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What's the story?
Lionel Messi and Barcelona are looking to complete a second successive domestic double by defeating Valencia in this weekend's Copa del Rey final. Valencia manager Marcelino elaborated on how he plans to stop the mercurial Argentine, in an interview given to Spanish media outlet Marca.
In case you didn't know...
Former Racing Santander and Levante midfielder Marcelino took over as Valencia manager in 2017 and has had a very successful 2018-19 season at the Mestalla, guiding Los Ches to a 4th place finish in LaLiga and thereby ensure Champions League qualification next season. Valencia narrowly beat Real Betis 3-2 over two legs in the Copa del Rey semifinal, to line up a showdown against LaLiga champions Barcelona in the final.
Lionel Messi and Barcelona faced Champions League heartbreak for yet another season, this time letting a spirited Liverpool side dominate them 4-0 at Anfield, surrendering a 3-0 first-leg advantage to get knocked out in the semi-finals. Despite winning LaLiga without any fuss, with 4 matchdays to spare, manager Ernesto Valverde will need to add the Copa del Rey title to keep the demanding Barca management happy.
The heart of the matter
Lionel Messi has scored an astonishing 50 goals across all competitions this season for the Blaugrana. The 'Messiah' currently rules the roost in both the UEFA Champions League Top Scorer and European Golden Shoe races and has already secured a record-equalling 6th Pichichi title after ending the season as LaLiga's top scorer.
Valencia has suffered at Messi's hand numerous times with La Pulga having scored three goals in his last two matches against them. Marcelino elaborated on how he plans to stop the Barcelona captain:
"The key is giving Messi little to do in the game," Marcelino said. "The problem is that although he appears sparingly, his actions have a decisive influence."
Messi's former Argentina teammate and ex-Real Madrid man Ezequiel Garay will most likely be the centre-back deployed by Marcelino to track the Argentine's movements. Midfield destroyers Francis Coquelin and Geoffrey Kondogbia will have to share in on this responsibility as the Barcelona captains often drift deep to initiate attacks.
What's next?
Barcelona will face Valencia at the Estadio Benito Villamarín in the final of the Copa del Rey on Sunday.
