SALAMANCA-. He Barcelona He had a scare this Thursday before the Salamanca Unionistsbut ended up qualifying for the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey after coming back and winning 3 to 1 against the modest team from the Spanish third category.
The locals took the lead with a great volley from Álvaro Gómez (31), but on the stroke of half-time Ferran Torres balanced for Barça (45), Jules Koundé made it 2-1 (69) and Alejandro Balde closed the game for the Blaugranas ( 73).
Barcelona arrived in Salamanca in need of victory after the tough 4-1 defeat in the final of the Spanish Super Cup against Real Madrid, but it was about to deepen its state of crisis a little further.
Unionistas, Villarreal’s executioner in the previous round of the Cup, controlled Barça until in the second half, Xavi Hernández opted to bring out his best men to unblock his team.
The Barça team once again showed their problems facing the opposite goal against a third division team, very well organized on the pitch of the Reina Sofía stadium in Salamanca.
Aimless control
Barça got the ball early against a Unionistas team that opted for quick counterattacks, which caused more than one scare to its rival.
The Barça team was able to take the lead with a slightly forced shot from point-blank range by young Marc Guiu that was cleared by goalkeeper Iván Martínez (21).
After half an hour, Ferran also tried it with a distant shot that was somewhat deflected (30) due to the difficulties in penetrating the defensive tangle set up by Unionistas.
Barça, although without gunpowder, seemed to have the match under control until a quick counterattack ended with a cross into the area where Álvaro Gómez appeared to unleash a volley that lodged in the Barça goal (31).
Forced to react, Barcelona began to give a little more rhythm to their game, but they would have to wait until half-time to tie.
A shot by Jorge Rastrojo after a great one resulted in a corner (44), after which Barça came out in a quick counterattack led only by Ferran who stood in front of Iván Martínez to make it 1-1 with a cross shot (45).
Barça accelerates
After the break, Barcelona gave one more point of intensity to their circulation and pressure, putting Unionistas in their field, although they continued to struggle to hit the goal.
Given the lack of ideas from Azulgrana, Xavi gave the entry to Pedri, Ilkay Gundogan and Robert Lewandowski (60) to unleash his team.
The Polish striker had a first opportunity in a half-turn shot that was stopped by Iván Martínez (68), who could do nothing against the shot from outside the area that Jules Koundé (69) released shortly after.
The Frenchman’s goal brought peace of mind to the Barcelona fans who began to play with more order until finishing the game through Balde.
The Barça full-back stood in the area and almost from no angle unleashed a shot that slipped into the Unionistas goal to make it 3-1 (73).
The Unionistas did not give up trying to extend their cup dream, but Barça, calmer, controlled the last minutes and will be in the quarter-final pot on Friday.
Source: AFP
