Atletico Madrid and Barcelona will clash again in the Spanish Copa del Rey semifinals after a thrilling 4-4 draw on February 25. The second leg takes place at Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid, Spain, with a 9:30pm local time (19:30 GMT) kickoff.
In the first match, both teams rallied from two goals down to tie 4-4 in stoppage time. Atletico Madrid was leading 2-0 before conceding four unanswered goals and equalizing the match. The team’s star striker, Julian Alvarez, will return to the starting lineup, replacing goalkeeper Jan Oblak.
Barcelona will be without key midfielder Dani Olmo, but Raphinha and Pau Cubarsi are set to start in his place. Head coach Hansi Flick believes his team has improved and is confident they can reach the Cup final.
Atletico Madrid’s head coach, Diego Simeone, says his team must try to go through the best moments of the game and isolate Barcelona from their potential goal situations. The match will be a pivotal return leg for both teams as they battle for the right to play in the cup final against Real Madrid.
The Copa del Rey final is scheduled to take place on April 26 at Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium in Seville, Spain.
Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2025/4/2/copa-del-rey-atletico-madrid-vs-barcelona-semifinal-start-lineup-news