Newsletter

Ceuta wants to go down from the cloud to Barça

round of 16

Xavi does not want to suffer as against Intercity and warns his team that “in the Cup there are always surprises”

Barça is playing a Copa del Rey round of 16 tie against Ceuta this Thursday, but also against relaxation. In just three days Xavi’s men have gone from winning the final of the Spanish Super Cup against Real Madrid in Saudi Arabia to playing the beans in the KO tournament at home in a First RFEF field. That radical change will be one more stumbling block in a team that knows that it is playing a competition in which mistakes are not allowed, at the slightest setback you are out.

«The example of Intercity suits us very well because it was a near miss. Winning the Super Cup will give us morale, but we can be left out tomorrow. It will not be easy for us, in the Cup there are always surprises », warned Xavi at the press conference prior to the tie that his team plays against Ceuta. The Egarense coach is aware of the importance of the title against his eternal rival, but he also knows that an elimination against Ceuta could reopen the box of thunder.

For this reason, Xavi does not want any type of relaxation and will take all his players to Ceuta with the exception of Ronald Araujo, with discomfort after the Super Cup, and Memphis Depay, who did not train this Wednesday along with the rest of his teammates because his departure is over. to Atletico Madrid. The rest will travel to Ceuta except for last-minute surprises and could be part of an eleven in which Xavi will return to the 4-3-3 system and in which he will make changes to all lines. Soccer players like Iñaki Peña, Bellerín, Eric García, Marcos Alonso, Kessié or Pablo Torre will have a new opportunity to show that they can take a step forward and earn a place in their coach’s plans.

The rival, annoying

It will not be an easy game for Barcelona. In front will be an upset rival after Xavi said in the draw that “we have finally been lucky”. Those words will resonate in an Alfonso Murube Stadium that will be filled to the brim with the aim of emulating other modest ones that left the Catalans in the gutter such as Figueres, Novelda or Gramenet.

Ceuta will try to give the bell a year in which things are not going too well. José Juan Romero’s pupils are last in Group I of the Primera RFEF and have barely achieved 8 points in the entire first round of the competition. The duel against Barça is an opportunity to gain morale after eliminating Utrera, Ibiza and Elche in the previous rounds.

Probable lineups:

  • Ceuta:
    Thomas Mejias; Macias, Alain, Robin, Fabrizio Danese; Albert Reina, Julius Churches, Little Gonzalez, Adri Caves or Aisar; Jota and Rodri.

  • Barcelona:
    Iñaki Rock; Bellerin, Eric Garcia, Marcos Alonso, Dawn; Sergi Robert, Kessie, Paul Tower; Ferran Torres, Lewandowski and Ansu Fati.

  • Referee:
    Juan Martínez Munuera (Valencian Committee).

  • Stadium and schedule:
    Alfonso Murube Stadium. 8:00 p.m.

  • TV:
    Movistar Champions League.

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Trending