Barcelona 3-1 Athletic Bilbao: 5 Talking Points

Luis Suarez, Gerard Pique and Neymar all got on target to cancel out Inaki Williams’ opener as Barcelona cruised to the semi-finals of the Copa Del Rey with a commanding 5-2 aggregate victory. Holding a slender 2-1 advantage entering the fray, the Catalans were stunned when Williams scored early in the first half for the visitors to level the aggregate scores, but the hosts responded well post the break following an insipid opening 45 minutes.Suarez pulled the holders level early in the second half, before late strikes from Gerard Pique and Neymar sealed a comprehensive progression to the last four.Let’s analyse the match and have a look at the 5 major talking points from the clash at Camp Nou:

#1 Barca\'s quality proves decisive

The 2-1 win at San Mames last week had Barcelona’s one foot in the semi-finals and they were expected to get the job done comfortably on home turf in the return fixture. But, Los Leones made it extremely tough for the home side with a clinical show in the opening half, especially Inaki Williams, who recently signed a contract extension at the Basque side.

1-0 down at the break on the back of a sloppy first half, Barcelona flew out of the blocks in the second and home side’s superior quality eventually proved decisive. Once Suarez levelled the scores, confidence was restored and the hosts soon followed it up 2 more clinical strikes.

Barcelona were never going to lose this one, especially since it was in their own backyard. But, the immense quality they possess within their ranks came to the fore as they turned the tables around after a dire first half.

#2 Bilbao blow it up after the break

It was going great for the visitors in the first 45 minutes of the game. Athletic Bilbao had managed to tear the script apart with a fine performance and were also leading 1-0 while heading into the break. Although it wasn't enough to progress, Bilbao played with all vim and vigor and showed great character. Only to blow it all up in the second half.

Just like when it seemed as if the Blaugrana would have to strain some sinews to get anything out of the game, the tie turned on its head when the teams returned after the break. The Catalans were the better side right from the restart and Bilbao were lacking the firepower with which they played earlier.

Barcelona had little problems going forward and looked really dangerous everytime they forayed into the box. The Lions cut a hapless figure and had no answers to the home side’s vivacity.

#3 High pressing does unsettle Barcelona

At the weekend, Barcelona had scraped through to a 2-1 win at Malaga, but the win wasn't without it’s warts. Malaga managed to give some headaches to their illlustrous visitors by their high-pressing and had also pulled a goal back in the process. It seems Athletic Bilbao had taken a leaf out of the book as they implemented a similar attacking approach which unsettled Barcelona yet again.

The Barca rearguard had Gerard Pique and Thomas Vermaelen at the centre of it, with Jeremy Mathieu and Dani Alves flanking them on the left and right wing respectively. The formation looked formidable, but the likes of Inaki Williams, Markel Susaeta and Javier Eraso punched holes in the defence with their strong attacking intent, especially in the first half.

As it was the case in Rosaleda, Barcelona were found wanting against an attacking side, who press high, and the teams are making the most of this shortcoming.

#4 Inaki sparked hope in Bilbao

In the first leg last week, defending champions Barcelona were cruising to a 2-0 victory, before Aritz Aduriz struck a late effort to halve the deficit going into the second leg. Although a turnaround at Camp Nou is as difficult as they come, Athletic Bilbao were handed a massive lifeline when Inaki Williams scored in the 12th minute to level the scores on aggregate.

Aduriz threaded a delicious pass to Inaki, who caught Jeremy Mathieu napping, and tucked away an easy finish into an empty net after beating goalkeeper Marc-Andre Ter Stegen. The goal sparked wild celebrations among the visiting supporters and Bilbao were truly felt they can turn this around.

Whilst Los Cules did not let that happen after an encouraging show in the second half, the Basque forward was terrific for the visitors, and almost put them on the verge of a historic win at Camp Nou.

#5 Barcelona have plenty of work to do

For the sixth year running, Barcelona have progressed to the last 4 of the Spanish King’s Cup and are firmly on course for another treble. However, they still have some issues to iron out if they are to emulate last year’s success.

For the second game running, the European champions struggled against a high-pressing team and for the second game running, needed the half-time interval to regroup themselves. Against Malaga in the league and Bilbao in the Copa del Rey, Barcelona were the second best team for the opening half. It seems they start the game on the back foot, before manager Luis Enrique’s dressing down in the dressing room at half-time spurs them on.

Whatever the reason might be, it is clear that something is wrong at Barcelona, and it needs to be resolved soon as the season is fast approaching its business end.