Copa del Rey 2020: Quarter-Final Results and Semi-Final Draw Schedule
February 6, 2020
Barcelona and Real Madrid were both eliminated from the 2020 Copa del Rey after the quarter-final fixtures wrapped up in eventful fashion Thursday.
Barca have won the trophy in four of the last five seasons and lost in last year's final, but the Blaugrana won't be in the semi-final after Inaki Williams struck late on for Athletic Bilbao at San Mames Stadium.
Los Blancos had already been sent packing when Real Sociedad won a seven-goal thriller at the Santiago Bernabeu earlier. Real loanee Martin Odegaard got the visitors started in the Spanish capital, with the hosts losing for the first time in 21 matches.
Basque rivals Athletic and Sociedad will be joined in the semi-final draw by Segunda Division outfit CD Mirandes. The second-tier side beat Villarreal 4-2 at home on Wednesday, 24 hours after Granada saw off holders Valencia thanks to a brace from a former member of Los Che, Roberto Soldado.
Fixtures for the last four will be decided after the draw in Las Rozas, Madrid, on Friday, February 7. The draw takes place at 1 p.m. local time, 12 p.m. GMT and 7 a.m. ET, according to AS.
Quarter-Final Results
- Granada 2-1 Valencia
- Mirandes 4-2 Villarreal
- Real Madrid 3-4 Real Sociedad
- Athletic Bilbao 1-0 Barcelona
Odegaard is enjoying a fruitful loan spell with Sociedad, an arrangement Real must have been ruing when the Norwegian playmaker opened the scoring on 22 minutes.
Alexander Isak's role in the opener was telling because the 20-year-old would be a thorn in Real's side all night. Isak scored twice in two minutes to put Sociedad in a commanding position 11 minutes after the restart.
The former Borussia Dortmund frontman has been in exceptional form this season:
Real got back in it thanks to a goal from Marcelo a minute before the hour mark. However, Mikel Merino appeared to make the tie safe 10 minutes later.
Los Merengues were in an unfamiliar position, but goals from Rodrygo and Nacho made things close. Despite Andoni Gorosabel being sent off five minutes into injury time, Sociedad held on for a memorable result.
Barca would have loved to make Real watch them lift another trophy, but Athletic were in no mood to be beaten. Unai Simon stood tall in goal for the hosts, saving from Ansu Fati and Lionel Messi on a night when Barcelona struggled to turn possession into clear-cut chances.
The visitors' inefficiency in front of goal was duly punished in the 93rd minute when Williams headed in. His goal proved enough to snap Barca's awesome consistency in this competition:
Before Sociedad and Bilbao sent Spain's top two packing, Mirandes dispatching Villarreal was the big result of the round. The Yellow Submarine were 2-1 up after 56 minutes when Santi Cazorla struck from the penalty spot, but the home side still found the net twice more.
Odei Onaindia and Antonio Sanchez Navarro wrapped up the scoring for a Mirandes side good enough to overcome impressive Sevilla in the last 16.
Tuesday saw Soldado settle things from 12 yards in the 94th minute. The 34-year-old cancelled out Rodrigo Moreno's equaliser for a Valencia side guilty of stumbling to a disappointingly brief defence of the trophy.
With six goals and three assists to his credit in 21 appearances, Soldado gives a well-drilled Granada team the firepower to produce more upsets in a tournament that's already exceeded expectations in that department.
B/R Recommends