Barcelona vs Real Madrid Copa Del Rey 2013 Semi Final Preview: Who Will Win Second Leg?
Barcelona will face off against fierce rivals Real Madrid in the second leg of the 2013 Copa Del Rey in just a few days time, in what promises to be a huge encounter with the tie currently balanced on a knife edge. Football fans across the world will be tuning into the showdown to see who comes out on top between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi - arguably the two best players on the planet right now.
In the first leg, the sides battled out a 1-1 draw as nothing could separate the teams, in a closely fought encounter.
Madrid defender Rafael Varane, who is just 19 years of age, was one of the stand out stars of the night, and provided Madrid with a fearless defensive display to keep the big guns of Barcelona quiet for most of the night.
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Since that first leg, Barcelona have played four games, winning 2, drawing 1, and losing 1.
The La Liga favorites managed to play out a tight draw with Valencia where the game finished 1-1, with Lionel Messi scoring the goal for Barca.
The team followed up that game with a 6-1 demolition of Getafe, where Messi, David Villa, Andres Iniesta, Alexis Sanchez, Cristian Tello, and Gerard Pique all got on the score sheet in a scintillating display of attacking prowess.
Messi then again scored two goals in the 2-1 win over Granada. However, the most shocking result came on Wednesday night when Barcelona were badly beaten by AC Milan. Messi and his teammates looked lost for ideas about how to break down the Italian giants, and their defensive frailties were put on show, in a near perfect display by Milan about how to play against the possession-greedy Barcelona side.
Meanwhile for Madrid they have also managed 2 wins, a draw and a loss since their first leg encounter with Barcelona.
Ronaldo scored his first ever own goal as Granada pulled off a surprise 1-0 win over the reigning La Liga champions. However, Ronaldo paid back for that mistake with a hat-trick in the 4-1 win over Sevilla in the next game.
In the Champions League Madrid faced English giants Manchester United at home, where they played out a tight 1-1 draw, with Ronaldo again impressing with a stunning header to pull Madrid back in the game.
Most recently, Madrid won won 2-0 over Rayo Vallecano courtesy of goals from Morata and Sergio Ramos.
Since the first leg both Ronaldo and Messi have scored 4 goals in 4 games. Both players will be huge in determining who will win the second leg between the two Spanish giants.
Barcelona vs Real Madrid takes place on Feb. 26 at the Camp Nou and will determine who will make it through to the final of the Copa Del Rey. The two teams will then square off again on March 2 for the third encounter between the teams of 2013.
