Barcelona and Atletico Madrid played out a thrilling 4-4 draw in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semifinal at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys in Catalonia, Spain.
Atletico Madrid raced to an early lead, scoring twice within the first six minutes through Julian Alvarez and Antoine Griezmann. However, Barcelona fought back with two quick goals by Pedri and Pau Cubarsi to level the score by the 21st minute. Iñigo MartÃnez then put Barcelona ahead with a goal in the 41st minute, giving the hosts a 3-2 lead at halftime. Robert Lewandowski extended Barcelona’s advantage in the 74th minute with a well-taken strike.
Just when it seemed Barcelona might take control, Atletico staged a late comeback. Marcos Llorente pulled one back in the 84th minute, and substitute Alexander Sorloth completed the turnaround with an equalizer in stoppage time.
The second leg of the semifinal will take place at Atletico’s Metropolitano Stadium in April. The winner will face either Real Madrid or Real Sociedad, who will play their first-leg match on Wednesday in the Basque Country.
Barcelona last won the Copa del Rey in 2021, while Atletico’s most recent triumph came in 2013. The two teams last met in December, when Atletico secured a 2-1 victory in the Spanish league.
Earlier rounds of the Copa del Rey were played as single-elimination matches, but the semifinals are contested over two legs.
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