Atlético Madrid (4) vs (4) FC Barcelona
Competition/Round: 2024-25 Copa del Rey, Semi-Finals, 2nd Leg
Barcelona Outs & Doubts: Marc-André ter Stegen, Marc Casadó, Dani Olmo, Marc Bernal (out), Andreas Christensen (doubt)
Atlético Outs & Doubts: Koke (doubt)
Date/Time: Wednesday, April 2, 2025, 9.30pm CET (Barcelona), 8.30pm BST/WAT (UK & Nigeria), 3.30pm ET, 12.30pm PT (USA), 1am IST (India, Thursday)
Venue: Estadio Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain
Referee: José Luis Munuera Montero
VAR: Juan Martínez Munuera
How to watch on TV: Premier Sports 1 (UK), Startimes World Football (Nigeria), TVE La 1, Movistar (Spain), others
How to watch online: ESPN+ (USA), FanCode (India), Movistar+ (Spain), others
Following a dominant win over Girona to maintain their spot at the top of the La Liga table at the weekend, Barcelona return to action with a trip to the Spanish capital for the second leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final tie against Atlético Madrid at the Estadio Metropolitano on Wednesday night.
These two will meet for the fourth and final time in what has been an incredible season series, with their first three meetings ranked very high on the list of the best games in Spanish football this year. There has been plenty of entertainment, high-level football from both sides, twists and turns and wild comebacks, and an unforgettable 4-4 draw in the first leg of the semi-finals five weeks ago which leaves the tie wide open going into this one.
Their most recent meeting was yet another insane clash in La Liga, in which Barça were outplayed for 70 minutes but came back from a two-goal deficit to win 4-2 with two stoppage-time goals to completely shock the Metropolitano crowd and practically end Atleti’s title hopes in the league.
The Colchoneros are also out of the Champions League, so the Spanish Cup is the only path to a title for a team that would absolutely consider this season a failure if it ends without a trophy to celebrate. They will go all out on Wednesday for a spot in the Final, and Diego Simeone’s team will certainly play with a level of intensity and desire we might not see from them again for the rest of the season.
Julián Álvarez and Antoine Griezmann will once again be counted on to provide the magic for the hosts, and Alexander Sorloth will look to get his customary goal against Barça either as a starter or off the bench. The midfield and backline is expected to feature more physical and defensive players in the lineup, and the crowd will be hotter than ever to try and urge their team to a victory.
Barça must be aware and prepared for the crazy atmosphere and for the high likelihood of having to play 120 minutes and maybe even a penalty shootout, and handling the emotions and possibly some refereeing mistakes is crucial in a game that is basically a final between two of the best teams in the continent, despite Atlético’s current bad form.
Hansi Flick has been awesome in big games so far, making crucial adjustments with his substitutions and pushing the right buttons to motivate his players to beat the very best teams all season long. If he can do it one more time, we will have a fourth El Clásico of the season set for the end of the month in Seville with a Cup trophy on the line.
Real Madrid needed an epic 4-4 draw of their own on Tuesday to escape Real Sociedad in extra time and advance to the final. Now it’s time for Barça to end Atlético’s season and book the second spot in the championship game.
Let’s dance.
POSSIBLE LINEUPS
Barcelona (4-2-3-1): Szczesny; Kounde, Cubarsí, Iñigo, Balde; De Jong, Pedri; Yamal, Gavi, Raphinha; Lewandowski
Atlético (4-4-2): Musso; Azpilicueta, Giménez, Lenglet, Reinildo; Llorente, De Paul, Barrios, Simeone; Griezmann, Álvarez
PREDICTION
Anyone who thinks they have any idea of what’s gonna happen when these two meet is fooling themselves. The only thing I know is this will be crazy fun and entertaining again, and it might take all 120 minutes and maybe even penalties to be decided. I’ll obviously predict a Barça win, but I have no idea how it’ll happen. So here’s a wild guess: 3-2 to the good guys after extra time.