La Liga leaders avoid Copa del Rey defeat and advance to last 16
Barcelona avoided an upheaval in the King's Cup on Tuesday, winning 2-0 against Spanish third-tier CD Guadalajara to advance to the round of 16.
Andreas Christensen and Marcus Rashford found the net in the final quarter of an hour as the title holders beat their lower league opponents.
The Catalan club, the most successful team in the history of the cup, are still on their way to a 33rd triumph after beating Real Madrid during last season's finale.
However, the task was not easy against their semi-professional hosts.
Kick-off was delayed by 30 minutes to allow supporters to enter the Estadio Pedro Escartin safely. But from the start, the LaLiga side predictably had the majority of possession against their third division hosts.
But despite Barca's dominance, the first half ended scoreless, with Lamine Yamal and Fermin Lopez both close to breaking the deadlock.
Rashford then squandered a few good chances for Hansi Flick's men before Christensen finally broke through the Guadalajara defense, heading home from a corner with 15 minutes remaining.
It was a big sigh of relief for Barça fans. Fermin was then denied a goal before Rashford sealed the victory with just 60 seconds of the 90 remaining, rounding the goalkeeper following a sublime pass from Yamal to close out the match.
2025-12-16 22:41:00
