Barcelona will be looking to keep their treble dream alive when they face Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Rey final on Saturday at Camp Nou. The two sides have already met in seven cup finals, Barcelona won five of them. The last encounter in a Copa del Rey final was in 2012, won by Barcelona. Bilbao have won just one of their last 24 meetings against Barca in all competitions. This season Barcelona won 2-0 at Camp Nou and 5-2 in Bilbao.
The odds are not favouring Bilbao at all, not only because of the might of their opponents but also because of the venue. The final will be played in Barca's back yard, at Camp Nou, a stadium where Bilbao have not won a match since 2001. Also, Athletic have not won the cup since 1984, when they beat Barcelona in the final to complete a domestic double. However, they have won this trophy on 23 occasions, only Barcelona (26) have more triumphs than the Basque side. Bilbao finished the Primera Liga season in seventh spot, so winning the Copa del Rey is their only chance of playing in the Europa League next season. Oscar de Marcos is injured for Bilbao, while Iker Muniain, Ander Iturraspe and Jonas Ramalho are also sidelined.
Barcelona have already claimed the Primera Liga trophy, they have the Champions League final coming up, so in between they need to win the Copa del Rey in order to continue their chase of a historic treble, which they have successfully completed in 2009. Their home record this season speaks for itself: 26 wins, one draw and two defeats. They have conceded just 15 goals at home and scored no less than 31 goals in their eight Copa del Rey matches this season. However, Luis Suarez is in doubt for the match with Pedro ready to take his place alongside Neymar and Messi.
Probable line-ups:
Athletic Bilbao: Herrerin - Iraola, Etxeita, Laporte, Balenziaga - Benat, San Jose, Rico, Aketxe, Williams - Aduriz
Barcelona: Ter Stegen - Alves, Pique, Mascherano, Alba - Iniesta, Busquets, Rakitic - Messi, Suarez, Neymar
My prediction: Barcelona to win 3-0.
Here are the odds for the match at Bet365:
Athletic Bilbao win - 13.00 Draw - 7.00 Barcelona win - 1.20
galata86 8 years ago
Barcelona played very very well and they deserved this win. This is second trophy in this season for Barcelona and I think that they will win one more. They have one match left and that match is most important for them, they play against Juventus and they are big favorites. So this will be great season for Barcelona.
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seculla
8 years ago
It was a great match, and as almost everyone expected Barcelona dominated on the field and won the title in Spanish Copa del Rey. That Messi's goal was perfect and he showed again that he is the best player in the World at this moment. It will be very hard for Juvenus defenders to stop him and also to watch out on Neymar...
It was a great match, and as almost everyone expected Barcelona dominated on the field and won the title in Spanish Copa del Rey. That Messi's goal was perfect and he showed again that he is the best player in the World at this moment. It will be very hard for Juvenus defenders to stop him and also to watch out on Neymar and Suarez.
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rikimartin4444_115925
8 years ago
Wow, this was great game. Barcelona dominated from the first minute and they scored three times. Messi scored twice, but his first goal is remarkable. He past by four or five opponent player and scored. That is goal you should watch. Barcelona is one match away from all three trophies this season. On the other side, Bilbao...
Wow, this was great game. Barcelona dominated from the first minute and they scored three times. Messi scored twice, but his first goal is remarkable. He past by four or five opponent player and scored. That is goal you should watch. Barcelona is one match away from all three trophies this season. On the other side, Bilbao gave their best, and that was enough for one goal.
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Alexa Alexa 8 years ago
Like everyone expected,Barcelona won another trophy.They are in fantastic form.I cant resist to mention.The things that he is doing are fantastic. He ran over 4 players of Atletic Bilbao and score a magnificent goal.With him in team,no one can be considered as a favourite against Barca.
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sharpe
8 years ago
Barcelona will have the chance to make one more step to the treble this season and I doubt that they are going to miss it. It's obvious that they are the favourites for this one but I hope that Athletic Bilbao will make this game interesting and I'm sure they will trough everything they've got. Sometimes the final games...
Barcelona will have the chance to make one more step to the treble this season and I doubt that they are going to miss it. It's obvious that they are the favourites for this one but I hope that Athletic Bilbao will make this game interesting and I'm sure they will trough everything they've got. Sometimes the final games are strange and everything could happen so will see.
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rikimartin4444_115925
8 years ago
This will be great match. Barcelona is trying to win all three titles this year. Barcelona will be with strongest team, this is general try for Champions league final. Messi-Neymar-Suarez can make lots of problems teams that are much stronger than Bilbao. On the other hand, Bilbao will try with strong defense and counter-attack....
This will be great match. Barcelona is trying to win all three titles this year. Barcelona will be with strongest team, this is general try for Champions league final. Messi-Neymar-Suarez can make lots of problems teams that are much stronger than Bilbao. On the other hand, Bilbao will try with strong defense and counter-attack. I think they are not able to score goal in this final. My prediction 2-0 Barcelona win.
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seculla
8 years ago
Barcelona is by far better team from Athletic Bilbao, but I always say that when it comes to the finals there is no favorite. Final is very different match from other. This is opportunity for Barcelona to win their second trophy this season, and enter the Champions League Final, just like Juve, with two trophies, and in...
Barcelona is by far better team from Athletic Bilbao, but I always say that when it comes to the finals there is no favorite. Final is very different match from other. This is opportunity for Barcelona to win their second trophy this season, and enter the Champions League Final, just like Juve, with two trophies, and in fight for third. It will be interesting match, and I expect nothing than Barcelona's win.
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galata86 8 years ago
The first final of the season for Barcelona. They're big favorites against Bilbao. I think this will be for them to be good training for the Champions League final, and will easily win. Predict the correct score 2: 0, and Neymar will score.
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Alexa Alexa 8 years ago
Barcelona has big chance to win triple crown,so they will definitely be fully motivated.Even powerfull Juventus has small chances to beat los Catalans,so Bilbao players know that they are underdogs here.I think that Barca will win this easily.It will be great boost of morale for them.It is always hard to win matches that...
Barcelona has big chance to win triple crown,so they will definitely be fully motivated.Even powerfull Juventus has small chances to beat los Catalans,so Bilbao players know that they are underdogs here.I think that Barca will win this easily.It will be great boost of morale for them.It is always hard to win matches that you are expected to win,but Barca definitely has players that can handle that pressure.My prediction for this match is easy win for Barcelona with 3 goal difference.
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h34dhunt3r
8 years ago
This can be considered as a wormup for Barcelonas players for upcoming Champions League finals that will played on wednesday in Berlin. Athletic Bilbao isn't considered as a hard opponent, and with all the respect for them, this should be easy cup title for team from Catalonia. Barca has been playing one of best footballs...
This can be considered as a wormup for Barcelonas players for upcoming Champions League finals that will played on wednesday in Berlin. Athletic Bilbao isn't considered as a hard opponent, and with all the respect for them, this should be easy cup title for team from Catalonia. Barca has been playing one of best footballs in history of this sport, with a deadly trio in front of opponents keeper. I've betted that Barca scores two goals in first half. My predictions: 4:1 for Barcelona; Man of the match: Lionel Messi.
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