Ernesto Valverde hoping for a comeback against Espanyol

With Barcelona trailing Espanyol 1-0 going into the second leg of their Copa Del Rey quarterfinal tie, Ernesto Valverde is hoping for a comeback.

Despite going into the Copa Del Rey quarterfinal second leg one goal down, Ernesto Valverde was in good spirits. His Barcelona team will take on Espanyol in the return leg at Camp Nou on Thursday. Espanyol won the first leg with a goal in the late stages of the second half. It wasn’t a good performance from the Blaugrana, but they have an opportunity to redeem themselves. As all Barca fans know, the team is no stranger to making comebacks in important matches.

To many fans, the Blaugrana are still the favorites to advance to the semifinals despite trailing 1-0 after the first leg. However, we know that Espanyol have been on good defensive form and an away goal could change everything. This rule doomed Real Madrid in a 2-1 home loss to Leganes on Wednesday. Despite losing to Espanyol, Barca were able to bounce back in a big way against Real Betis.

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Barca defeated Real Betis 5-0 with a dominant second half performance where all five goals were scored. At the Estadio Benito Villamarin. Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez each got a brace and looked absolutely brilliant for the league leaders. The duo is very much in top form and the fans hope that continues. They should be the difference against their local rivals in the second leg of this tie.

Ernesto Valverde is hoping that his team can turn this tie around. With the talent representing the Blaugrana, the team is confident that they can advance to the semifinals. Players other than Messi and Suarez will be asked to play big roles for Barca in this match. Valverde talked about this in more during his latest press conference.

"“We’re at a disadvantage but this is not the first time we’ve been behind, it’s happened in games this season when you have less time. We also have an advantage, because it is a two-legged tie and we’re at home and we hope the supporters can push us on. These are the games that motivate you and the prize is a sweet one. We hope to get through into the semifinal. That’s what we will try to do.”Ernesto Valverde on his teams chances against Espanyol"

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Overall, this second leg against Espanyol is a very important match for Barcelona. It is arguably Barca’s biggest match of the season considering what is still in play. They are setting the pace in La Liga and they’re in the Champions League knockout stages. With the Copa Del Rey hanging in the balance, so does Barca’s treble hopes. We’ll see if Barca can advance in an important match at Camp Nou.

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