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The Catalan giants are well on target for a domestic double as they destroyed Sevilla 5-0 at the Estadio Wanda Metropolitano to lift the Copa del Rey title.
Luis Suarez’s brace and a goal each from Philippe Coutinho, Lionel Messi, and Andres Iniesta were enough for the Blaugrana to claim their 30th Copa del Rey title and the fourth one in a row.
They were simply phenomenal from start to finish and never gave any chance for Sevilla to come back into the game. They completely outplayed their opponents on the night.
On that note, let’s take a look at the key talking points from the game.
#5 Iniesta's masterclass
One may need a better word than ‘masterclass’ to describe Iniesta’s effort against Sevilla in the Copa del Rey finals. He was unbelievably spectacular on the night and dictated the play from minute 1.
With a passing accuracy of almost 95%, Iniesta rarely misplaced a pass on the night. He was brilliant in the final third with a passing accuracy of 85%. He scored Barcelona’s fourth goal, after a beautiful one-two with Lionel Messi.
Iniesta attempted seven take-ons and successfully completed each one of them. He pulled all the strings in midfield and set the pace of the game. In short, a Man of the Match display from the Spanish wizard.
#4 Sevilla lost the game within the first 45 minutes
The Catalan giants scored three goals within the first 40 minutes and the game was over even before the halftime whistle. Barcelona opened the scoring in the 14th minute as Philippe Coutinho teed up Luis Suarez for an easy tap-in.
Chances came thick and fast for Barcelona in the first half and they doubled the score in the 31st minute. Jordi Alba created the opportunity from left flank as he made a beautiful pass for Messi who struck it past David Soria.
It was all one-way traffic in the first 45 minutes and Barcelona made it 3-0 in the 40th minute as Luis Suarez scored his second goal of the night.
#3 Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez combined well to torment Sevilla
The duo of Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez had a game to remember. They had Sevilla defenders in their pockets and were simply phenomenal on the night. Luis Suarez scored two beautiful goals in the first half while Lionel Messi scored one and assisted 2 more.
Luis Suarez opened the scoring in the 14th minute and then made it 3-0 in the 40th minute. Lionel Messi scored one right at the half-hour mark and later assisted Luis Suarez and Andres Iniesta for Barcelona’s third and fourth.
Messi and Suarez had some beautiful exchange of passes throughout the game and their one-twos were simply eye-catching. They combined well in the final third and complemented each other really well. It looked like they had some sort of a telepathic connection.
#2 Sloppy defending let Sevilla down
Sevilla back four had a torrid night against the Blaugrana. They were very sloppy at the back and never settled against the likes of Iniesta, Messi, and Suarez. Mercado, Lenglet, and Escudero were hapless at the back and had no answers to the continuous onslaught from Barcelona.
They were really slow and were caught open at the back on far too many occasions. They gave a lot of space to Barcelona attackers inside their own half and were clueless against the one-twos played by Barcelona players. All in all, it was a very poor display by Sevilla defenders and it has cost them the title.
#1 A great team effort in the end
It was a commanding display by the Catalan giants in the Copa del Rey finals. It was a beautiful team effort by Ernesto Valverde’s side as they demolished Sevilla at the Estadio Wanda Metropolitano.
Jordi Alba, Gerard Pique, and Jasper Cillessen were solid at the back. Busquets and Rakitic held firm in the middle of the park while Coutinho, Iniesta, Suarez, and Messi dominated the final third.
First four Barcelona goals were well worked out and everyone played their part well. It was a free-flowing game by Barcelona and Sevilla could do nothing to stop the Barcelona juggernaut.
