COPA DEL REY PREVIEW: Barbastro v FC Barcelona

For FC Barcelona, 2025 starts with a Copa del Rey round of 32 tie against the very same side that they played at this stage 12 months ago. Barbastro from Huesca, Aragon, reached the round for the very time last season, and the prize was a game against Barça. This year, the fourth tier side have managed to repeat the trick, and coincidentally, they have ended up being drawn against the Catalan giants yet again.

Like all games in the cup until the semi-finals, it is being played as a single leg, and kicks off at the home of the lower ranked club on Saturday at 7pm CET. As this is the cup, the broadcasters in certain countries and regions may be different for this game than in other competitions. Hopefully our guide will help you find the right place to watch.

No easy game

On paper there is an immense gulf between these teams. Barça are currently ranked second in the Champions League and third in La Liga, while Barbastro are not only playing four division below them, but are also struggling. Unless they can turn things around, they will be dropping down to an even lower tier next season.

But funny things can happen in the cup. Barbastro have already eliminated first division Espanyol 2-0 to get this far, and the game against Barça last season is all the proof that's needed to realise that this will be no easy ride for Barça. Despite the Catalans fielding a near full-strength starting XI and twice taking the lead through Fermín and Raphinha, Barbastro twice equalised and it was only thanks to a late penalty from Robert Lewandowski that the game didn't go into extra time and potentially a replay.

The Barbastro side that Barça will be facing this year has changed a lot in 12 months, although there are several players that are still the same, and also the same manager, Dani Martínez. And things have improved for them since they beat Espanyol. They're unbeaten in the league and finally finding the form that they need to avoid relegation.

But much as recent results have been positive, the challenge they now face is huge. Barça are looking to extend their record of 32 Spanish cup trophies, and are especially keen to do so in their 125th anniversary year and after not having appeared in the final since 2020/21. What's more, after a sorry string of results in La Liga to close 2024, largely due to bad fortune rather than bad football, the team very much have a point to prove before they make the trip to Saudi Arabia for the Spanish Super Cup.

And history is on Barça's side. Two decades have passed since the last time they were knocked out of the cup so early. That was in 2004/05, when they tumbled to a shock 1-0 defeat at Gramenet, a Division 2B team at the time from the outskirts of metropolitan Barcelona.

Team news

Marc Bernal, Marc-André ter Stegen and Andreas Christensen are all still injured, and although Lamine Yamal and Héctor Fort were both able to join part of training this week, they aren't back in time for this one.

It will be interesting to see what happens in goal, whether Iñaki Peña will continue between the posts, or whether new recruit Wojciech Szczęsny will given the nod in the cup. According to Hansi Flick, no decision has been made in that regard.

As for the Dani Olmo and Pau Víctor situation, the coach said: "Things are as they are, we have to accept them, we are professionals. I am concentrating on football and training. We have confidence in the club. I am always positive but we have to wait for the decision." Get the full story from the pre-game conference here.