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The Best Copa Del Rey Final Moments
Blogs

The Best Copa Del Rey Final Moments

The Best Copa Del Rey Final Moments

The two Spanish Giants Barcelona and Real Madrid will face off against each other in the Copa Del Rey final this weekend, and there has been plenty of special moments in the competition.

Real Madrid squeezed through to the finals after narrowly beating Real Sociedad 5-4, whilst Barcelona beat Atletico Madrid by the same scoreline.

The final will be the eighth time in history where Barcelona and Real Madrid will meet each other, and the fixture has brought some of the most memorable moments in footballing history.

Ahead of the final showdown this weekend, here are some of the best moments from these games, with some of the best score lines in the final.

Real Madrid vs Barcelona, 2014- When Gareth Bale Turned into a Sprinter

It is only right that the first on the list comes from a game involving the two sides playing in the final on Saturday night.

Gareth Bale had joined Los Blancos from Spurs in 2013 for a record fee at the time, and his first season the welshman was able to get himself a Champions League and Copa Del Rey trophy. And it is fair to say the winger left his mark on the Copa Del Rey final.

With no Cristiano Ronaldo available for the final, Bale had to step up to the plate and show his worth to his Madrid fans.

Real Madrid took the lead through a Angel Di Maria goal, when Marc Bartra equalised for the side in the second half with a towering header. Little did the Spanish defender know that he would be subject to a sprint faceoff with Bale, where there would be no contest.

With just five minutes of play left, Bale would receive the ball down the left hand side from Fabio Coentrao, and without hesitation would knock the ball further up the line, and transcended into a sprint, taking a detour away from the pitch around Marc Bartra, before running back onto the pitch and knock it through the legs of Jose Pinto to take the trophy back to the Bernabeu. It was the perfect way for Bale to cement himself into Madrid history, and he set himself up to have a stellar career in Madrid.

Barcelona vs Athletic Bilbao, 2015- Messi being Messi

2015 was Barcelona's year. The Catalonian side had wrapped up the La Liga title earlier on in the season, and had the chance to secure a treble, and what better way to keep that dream going then winning the Copa Del Rey Final.

Bilbao must of knew what was coming when they stepped out onto the pitch and saw Messi, Suarez and Neymar all lined up. Of course it had to be Messi who took the limelight, opening the score line with a goal worthy of winning any final.

Messi picked up the ball on the right hand side, before taking three Bilbao players for a walk, dribbling past all three with ease, before knocking the ball inside onto his stronger left foot, before driving a low shot into the bottom right corner.

The stadium erupted, and it was fair to say no one could stop Barcelona that day, as they went on to win 3-1, with Neymar getting involved on the goals.

With the double secured, Barcelona would get themselves the treble a week later, as they beat Juventus 3-1 in the Champions League final, topping off a brilliant season.

Real Madrid vs Barcelona, 2011- CR7 to the rescue

To some, it will probably be a surprise it took this long for this man to make his way onto this list.

Cristiano Ronaldo lived for the big moments, and 2011 was no different. Another game between Real Madrid and Barcelona, and this one would require a spark of brilliance to separate the sides.

With both sides unable to break the deadlock, it was deep into extra time where Ronaldo would show his athletic prowess.

Fabio Coentrao would play a 1-2 with Marcelo down the left hand side, when Coentrao lifted a inch perfect cross straight to Ronaldo, where he would rise taller than anyone thought was capable, and would power a header home past Pinto, in what would be the only goal in the final, giving Ronaldo his first silverware at the club, along with the first trophy under new manager Jose Mourinho.

Sevilla 0-5 Barcelona, 2018

In the 2017/18 season, the Copa Del Rey final was fairly uncontested for Barcelona.

Having lost a third of the MSN trio, with Neymar making the record switch to PSG, it didn't affect the performance of Barcelona, as they would still look completely in control of Spanish Football.

With the side already on a three winstreak of the Copa Del Rey, Sevilla had their work cut out for them to come close to knocking Barcelona off their perch.

Barcelona already had a 3-0 lead by half time, with Luis Suarez getting himself a brace, whilst of course Messi had to get himself involved too.

Sevilla were sloppy, but Barcelona were also just untouchable, and goals from Andres Iniesta and newcomer Phillipe Coutinho would secure themselves the Copa Del Rey for the fourth year running in spectacular fashion.

Arenas 5-2 Barcelona, 1919

This will come as shock to many footballing fans, with potentially half not aware of who Arenas are.

Arenas were one of the founding members of the Spanish La Liga at the time, amongst many other clubs such as Bilbao and Real Sociedad.

And in 1919, Arenas made their way to the Copa Del Rey final, facing up against Barcelona.

Arenas came out on top, winning 5-2 with a hattrick from Felix Sesumaga. Unfortunately, Arenas could never keep up with their huge footballing glory in the earlier generations.

The Basque side now play in the fourth tier of Spanish Football, and haven't played in the top division since 1930.

Their footballing glory is a thing of the past, but they will always have a Copa Del Rey trophy in their locker, and can claim they once beat Barcelona 5-2. The win may have came over 100 years ago, but Arena Club De Gexto are one of the most historic Spanish Football Clubs, and they should be remembered for their winnings many years ago.

Benji Kosartiyer
Journalist
Jake Pearce

Writer at Football Park

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