Copa throne belongs to Valencia

[Stendhal 𐌕]

 

Valencia are Copa del Rey champions for the eighth time thanks to a thrilling 2-1 victory over Barcelona in the 2018-19 Copa Final on Saturday night at the Benito Villamarin Stadium in Sevilla.

Goals from Kevin Gameiro and Rodrigo Moreno capped a masterful first half performance from Los Che, but Barcelona would storm back thanks in part to a Lionel Messi goal, only for Valencia to hold firm the rest of the way to claim their first Copa del Rey since 2008. Valencia's triumph also puts a halt to Barcelona's streak of four consecutive Copa del Rey titles.

An injury to regular starter Marc-Andre ter Stegen paved the way for back-up Jasper Cillessen to start, while the much-maligned Philippe Coutinho was given the nod to start up front in a 4-4-2 with Lionel Messi in place of the injured Luis Suarez. Manager Ernesto Valverde also opted to push Sergi Roberto forward into midfield, meaning Semedo was slotted in at right-back.

As for the XI put out by Valencia boss Marcelino, of note was Kevin Gameiro starting ahead of Santi Mina, while Wass lined up at full-back and Kondogbia was on the bench.

Valencia had a golden opportunity to score first when an ill-advised back pass from Clement Lenglet rolled right to Rodrigo Moreno. Cillessen came off his line, forcing Rodrigo to his left and the Valencia striker looked set to score, only for Gerard Pique to come sliding in at the last possible moment to clear the ball off the line.

Barcelona were the usual dominant selves in possession, but were barely threatening Los Che. On the other hand, Valencia looked to do damage when going forward and they found the game's first goal midway through the half thanks to a fine finish from Gameiro. Gabriel Paulista floated a pass down the left to Gaya, who crossed to Gameiro and the Frenchman juked Jordi Alba before firing in for a 0-1 Valencia lead.

Los Che were the team playing with life and energy, and they were fully deserving of their second goal after the half-hour mark. Dani Parejo played an exquisite pass down the left flank where Carlos Soler sped past Alba and crossed for an unmarked Rodrigo, who smacked a header into net to make it 0-2.

Barcelona finally woke up toward the tail end of the half and Valencia goalkeeper Jaume was called on to stop efforts from Messi and Ivan Rakitic.

Valverde did not hesitate to make changes at the break, as Semedo and Arthur were hauled off in favour of Arturo Vidal and Malcom. The introduction of the latter two immediately gave Barcelona a spark and only the woodwork prevented Messi from cutting the deficit to one. Vidal had a chance on the rebound but fired well above the crossbar.

Marcelino's men would adjust accordingly and the same frustrations Barcelona were experiencing in the first half were also on display in the second stanza. Any time Messi received the ball, there was a wall of white shirts right in front of him, meanwhile none of the Argentine's teammates offered any type of cutting edge in the final third.

But things changed dramatically off a Barcelona corner kick when Lenglet did well to head toward goal, forcing a block from Jaume. Messi was ready for the rebound and pounced quickly to bring Barcelona to within 1-2 with more than a quarter-hour remaining.

The goal set the stage for a pulsating finale, with Barcelona coming with everything in hopes of an equaliser, but the Valencia defence did the job by turning away Messi & Co. when it mattered most to clinch their long-awaited title.

Match Sheet:

1.- Barcelona: Cillessen, Semedo (Vidal, min. 46), Pique, Lenglet, Jordi Alba, Busquets, Rakitic (Alena, min. 77), Sergi Roberto, Arthur (Malcom, min. 46), Coutinho, Messi.

2.- Valencia: Jaume, Wass, Garay, Gabriel Paulista, Gaya, Soler, Coquelin, Parejo (Kondogbia, min. 65), Guedes, Rodrigo Moreno (Diakhaby, min. 88), Gameiro (Piccini, min. 72).

Goals: 0-1, min. 22: Gameiro; 0-2, min. 33: Rodrigo; 1-2, min. 73: Messi

Referee: Undiano Mallenco (Navarra). Yellow Cards: Gaya (Min. 53) for Valencia, Busquets (Min. 61) for Barcelona, Vidal (Min. 89) for Barcelona

Red cards: None

Stadium: Benito Villamarin

Attendance: 53.698