Valenciavs.Barcelona

The two sides are set to meet less than two weeks after Barcelona ran rampant at Estadi Olympic Lluis Companys to thrash Los Che 7-1 in a La Liga encounter.

Match preview

Valencia's overriding priority is to preserve their top-flight status, with the club currently at risk of suffering their first relegation since 1985-86.

Los Che are languishing four points adrift of safety in 19th position after winning four, drawing seven and losing 11 of their 22 league matches this season.

Carlos Corberan has overseen two of those victories in his five league games in charge, with both of those wins taking place in Valencia's previous two home matches, including a narrow 2-1 victory in Sunday's meeting with Celta Vigo thanks to goals from Luis Rioja and Javi Guerra.

The former West Bromwich Albion boss has also been in charge for two of Valencia's four matches in the 2024-25 Copa del Rey, seeing his side claim 2-0 victories over Eldense and Ourense after his predecessor, Ruben Baraja, had started the cup win with wins against Parla Escuela and Ejea.

Los Che are now preparing to face top-flight opposition for the first time in their Copa del Rey journey, with the hosts hoping to spring a surprise to keep their hopes alive of winning the cup for the eighth time and the first time since 2018-19.

However, Valencia will be fully aware that they have their work cut out to beat Barcelona, especially as they have not claimed a head-to-head victory since recording a 2-0 home win in January 2020.

Barcelona have been in fine form in 2025, having won seven and drawn two of their last seven competitive matches since losing 2-1 to Atletico Madrid in their final game of 2024.

Their unbeaten run has seen them lift the Spanish Super Cup, beat Barbastro and Real Betis in the Copa del Rey, as well as taking four points from their final two league phase games to finish in top spot in the Champions League standings.

The Blaugrana have also taken seven points from their three league games in their undefeated streak, playing out a 1-1 draw with Getafe, before going on to take maximum points from their home matches against Valencia and Alaves.

While they cruised past Valencia by an eyewatering 7-1 scoreline, the Catalan giants had to be content with a 1-0 victory in Sunday's game against Alaves, with Robert Lewandowski's 30th goal of the season moving them to within four points of leaders Real Madrid.

Barcelona will now put their La Liga campaign on hold to focus on their third consecutive Copa del Rey quarter-final, with the visitors looking to keep their hopes alive of winning the competition for the 32nd time and the first time since 2020-21.

The Blaugrana have enjoyed their recent trips to Mestalla, having won four of their last five away meetings with Valencia, including a 2-1 victory in their previous away encounter in August.

Valencia Copa del Rey form:

D

W

W

W

Valencia form (all competitions):

W

D

W

W

L

W

Barcelona Copa del Rey form:

W

W

Barcelona form (all competitions):

W

D

W

W

D

W

Team News

Valencia remain without the services of right-back Thierry Correia, who is out for a significant period after sustaining an anterior cruciate ligament injury in October.

Dimitri Folquier, Enzo Barrenechea and Diego Lopez will all hope to shake off any knocks after complaining of some discomfort following the win over Celta.

Backup goalkeeper Stole Dimitrievski is expected to start over Giorgi Mamardashvili, having featured in each of the four cup matches.

As for the visitors, Marc-Andre ter Stegen and Marc Bernal remain sidelined with knee injuries, while Andreas Christensen is ruled out with a calf issue.

Dani Olmo is looking to prove his fitness in time to play a part in Thursday's fixture, having been forced to miss the last four matches through injury.

Gavi is continuing to be monitored after suffering a head collision in Sunday's win over Alaves, raising some doubt about whether he will be available for the quarter-final tie.

Flick could make a few changes to the side that beat Alaves at the weekend, with Eric Garcia, Frenkie de Jong and Fermin Lopez all in contention to start.

Valencia possible starting lineup:

Dimitrievski; Foulquier, Tarrega, Mosquera, Gaya; Guerra, Barrenchea; Lopez, Almeida, Rioja; Duro

Barcelona possible starting lineup:

Pena; Kounde, Cubarsi, Garcia, Balde; Pedri, De Jong, Fermin; Yamal, Raphinha, Lewandowski

We say: Valencia 1-3 Barcelona

Valencia will be relieved to have home advantage after they fell to a heavy 7-1 away defeat against Barcelona last month, but while the hosts should make it a closer contest this time around, we ultimately believe that Barcelona's attacking quality will shine through.

Written by

Ben Sully

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