Athletic Club, with its stellar captain Iker Muniain, brought down Barcelona in the extra time of an exciting cup classic that will go down in history because the Bilbao team had to go ahead three times to qualify for the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey. It was a final 3-2 with two goals from Muniain, the first a great goal and the second a penalty, and Íñigo Martínez, the latter with his soul, for the locals, and from Ferran Torres and Pedri to tie twice, the Canarian sending the shock to the extension in the discount of the regulation time.
Without Unai Simón, Iñaki Willams or Ansu Fati on the field of play, the game began with a thousand and already in minute 2 Athletic had taken the lead through a play that did a lot of damage to Barcelona, a break through the Nico Williams band. Even if the one who beat Ter Stegen was Muniain with a great goal. A ball from the left that the squad sought with effect at the far post of the visiting goalkeeper.
Nico had a second chance in minute 6, but was unable to finish off a cross from Yuri, who also gave the azulgranas a lot of problems on the other flank.
Barça balanced the clash, which warned with a move to the bottom line by Gavi, which De Marcos aborted, and gave in a shot by Ferran similar to Muniain’s, also impossible for Agirrezabala, although at medium height.
A new game after 20 minutes, but Athletic did not feel the blow, as they kept looking for Xavi Hernández’s men in their field, causing them errors and generating scoring chances. More than half a dozen and five clear by De Marcos, again Muniain, Nico, Sancet Dani García. De Marcos finished fatally, Muniain missed a header to Nico’s cross, the little Williams and Dani García answered Ter Stegen with two tremendous pardas and Sancet blocked Pique’s shot in a play with the visiting defense adrift after a loss in the exit of the ball that gave options to several rojiblancos before the final shot of the Navarrese. And Raúl García still had a header to finish off a local siege before the break that resulted in four corners, three shots on goal and two good chances.
The locker room match returned to where the first part ended, to the Barça area, in which, first, Sancet did not finish off a play in which he was injured and, later, Nico, after a pass from his brother, who was already in the field, he met Ter Stegen again. The little brother returned the detail to the eldest, but Iñaki sent a shot high at the near post that a ‘9’ must, at least, direct between the three sticks.
Barça tried to respond through Ansu Fati and, already in the final stretch of the second half, with a shot from De Jong that was blocked by Vivian, although a couple of counters from Iñaki Williams and a shot made it clear that Athletic was still alive. And so much so that I was because from another arreón came 2-1. A foul on Yuri that Muniain put on Berenguer’s head, with another rojiblanco in positional offside. Ter Stegen managed to stop the Navarrese’s header, but on the line Piqué could not prevent Íñigo Martínez from introducing the ball into the goal more with the soul than with anything else.
It was the 85th minute, but the match was not over. Because Barcelona found the option to draw and Pedri did not miss it. Alves returned a loose ball with a bicycle kick to the center of the area and Pedri put the toe in ahead of Vesga and made it impossible for the young Agirrezabala, who touched the ball, to stretch.
The first news of the extension was the injury, it seemed that muscular, of Ansu Fati, who retired desolate and encouraged by his companions; the second was another chance from Bilbao, by Iñaki Williams, who shot slightly high from the edge of the box. The third was a new goal. The second from Muniain, this time converting a penalty from Alba into a Nico Williams cross from the right. The local captain tricked Ter Stegen, beat him on his right and, after his team lasted the entire second half of extra time, qualified for the Copa del Rey quarterfinals.
Datasheet:
3 – Athletic Club: Agirrezabala; De Marcos (Lekue, m.106), Vivian, Íñigo Martínez, Yuri (Balenziaga, m.91); Nico Williams (Zarraga, m.110), Dani García, Vesga (Nolaskoain, m.Muniain; Sancet (Iñaki Williams, m.51) and Raúl García (Berenguer, m.79).
2 – FC Barcelona: Ter Stegen; Alves, Araujo, Piqué, Jordi Alba; Sergio Busquets, Pedri (Braithwaite, m.106), Gavi (Frenkie de Jong, m.60); Ferran Torres, Jutglà (Ansu Fati, m.60; Dest, m.95) and Abde (Nico, m.46).
goals: 1-0, m.2: Muniain. 1-1, m.20: Ferran Torres. 2-1, m.86: Íñigo Martínez. 2-2, m.92: Pedri. 3-2, m.106 +: Muniain, penalty.
Referee: José Luis Munuera Montero (Andalusian Committee). He showed a yellow card to the locals Dani García (m.30), De Marcos (m.104) and Iñaki Williams (m.119), to the visitors Piqué (m.75), Pedri (m.97), De Jong ( m.104) and Jordi Alba (m.104).
VAR referee: José Luis González González (Committee of Castilla y León).
Incidents: Round of 16 tie for the Copa del Rey in a single match played in San Mamés with 75 percent of the capacity, the maximum allowed by health restrictions, complete. Some 40,000 spectators.
