Barcelona v. Atletico Madrid
January 14, 2009 by Qasim
Barcelona v. Atletico Madrid (Copa del Rey, Round of 16, 2nd Leg)
First leg: (Atletico 1-3 Barcelona)
Having lost three games in a row and with calls for Coach Javier Aguirre to be sacked, Atletico Madrid travel to the Nou Camp, Barcelona for the Copa del Rey last 16, second leg needing to overturn a 3-1 deficit.
The Catalans comfortably outclassed Atletico in the first leg last week thanks to a superb hat-trick from Lionel Messi, who also scored in the weekend’s win over Osasuna.
Atletico Madrid winger Simao Sabrosa though, is still confident of his team’s chances. “Against Barcelona we’re not going to let our heads drop and we’re not going to give the tie up for lost,” he said. “We’ve played three poor matches; we’ve lost and now is the time to lift ourselves.” He also reiterated the team’s support for under-fire coach Javier Aguirre, who was urged to quit by disgruntled supporters during the recent home defeats to Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao.
In other Second Leg matches on Wednesday, Sevilla travel to Deportivo Coruna with a 2-1 lead from the first leg, holders Valencia host Racing Santander level at 1-1, Real Valladolid need to reverse a 3-1 loss at Sporting Gijon in the first leg, Real Mallorca defend a 3-1 advantage at Almeria, Poli Ejido travel to Espanyol looking to defend a 3-2 advantage and Real Union play Real Betis trailing 1-0.
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