February 04, (THEWILL) — Barcelona progressed to the Copa del Rey semi-finals with a 2-1 victory over Albacete, thanks to Ronald Araujo’s decisive header. The second-tier side had knocked out Real Madrid with a late winner in the previous round, but fell short of another upset against the holders.
The visitors grew into the first half and took the lead in the 39th minute when Frenkie de Jong found Lamine Yamal, who shaped a volley into the left side of the net. Barcelona emerged from the interval with intent, and Marcus Rashford drove down the left before squaring into the box, only for Dani Olmo’s first-time finish to be cleared off the line by Daniel Bernabeu.
Araujo doubled the advantage in the 56th minute, getting ahead of his marker to glance Rashford’s corner past Raul Lizoain, who found himself crowded in the six-yard box. Jefte Betancor, the hero against Madrid, squandered two excellent chances to reduce the deficit before converting Antonio Puertas’ low cross, but the offside flag went up against his team-mate.
Javi Moreno gave Albacete hope in the 87th minute with a stunning diving header from Jose Carlos Lazo’s bending free-kick. Ferran Torres then had a strike ruled out moments later, setting up a tense conclusion. Albacete came within inches of forcing extra time, but Fran Gamez saw his effort headed off the line by Gerard Martin.
The result confirms Barcelona’s place in the last four of the competition. Albacete, despite their spirited performance and late rally, could not add another La Liga scalp to their cup run.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
