MX23RW : Monday, December 23 01:53:40| >> :120:9543:9543:

European roundup: Lionel Messi scores as Barcelona progress in Copa del Rey

The Argentinian had served a two-match ban following the first red card of his Barca career.

Lionel Messi scored on his comeback as Barcelona came from behind to beat Rayo Vallecano in the Copa del Rey.

Fran Garcia stunned the Spanish giants when he opened the scoring for Rayo Vallecano shortly after the hour mark.

But on his return from a two-match ban following the first red card of his Barcelona career, Messi converted Antoine Griezmann's pass to haul the visitors level six minutes later.

Then, with 10 minutes left on the clock, the Argentinian turned provider to release Jordi Alba who played in Frenkie de Jong to score the winner.

De Jong's late strike ensured Barca's progress to the quarter-finals, and keeps alive Ronald Koeman's hopes of ending his first season as manager with a trophy.

Luuk de Jong hit a first-half double as Sevilla booked their place in the last eight with a 3-0 win over Valencia.

De Jong opened the scoring after 20 minutes before doubling his side's advantage 13 minutes later.

Ivan Rakitic then struck with seven minutes remaining in the first half to put the game out of sight and seal Valencia's second last-eight spot in three seasons.

Elsewhere, Almeria beat Osasuna 5-4 on penalties after their tie ended goalless.

In Italy, 10-man Atalanta won a five-goal thriller to progress to the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia.

Berat Djimsiti put the home side ahead after just seven minutes only for Vedat Muriqi to head Lazio level 10 minutes later.

Francesco Acerbi then gave the visitors in the lead before Ruslan Malinovskyi struck to ensure the sides went in 2-2 at the interval.

Atalanta appeared in trouble after Jose Palomino was shown a straight red card for taking out Manuel Lazzari with 37 minutes of the match still to play.

But moments later Aleksej Miranchuk hit the decisive goal of the game. Duvan Zapata then saw his penalty saved by Lazio keeper Pepe Reina, but the hosts clung on to secure their last-four spot.

In the night's other fixture, Juventus, without a rested Cristiano Ronaldo, sealed a semi-final date against Inter Milan after winning 4-0 against SPAL.

Alvaro Morata scored from the penalty spot after just 16 minutes before Gianluca Frabotta doubled Juve's advantage with his first goal for the club.

Dejan Kulusevski added a third in the second half with Federico Chiesa completing the rout in stoppage time.

ID:432448: cacheID:432448:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:7934:
Written by
P A
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Arsenal defender Shkodran Mustafi pictured in October 2020
Read Next:
Mustafi's father denies claims Arsenal could terminate contract
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Atletico MadridAtletico18125133122141
2Real Madrid18124241182340
3Barcelona19122551222938
4Athletic Bilbao19106329171236
5Villarreal188643430430
6Mallorca199371921-230
7Real Sociedad187471613325
8GironaGirona187472625125
9Real BetisBetis186752122-125
10Osasuna186752327-425
11Celta Vigo187382728-124
12Rayo Vallecano185762021-122
13Las PalmasLas Palmas186482327-422
14Sevilla186482027-722
15Leganes184681728-1118
16AlavesAlaves184592130-917
17Getafe183781115-416
18Espanyol1843111630-1415
19Valencia172691626-1012
20Real ValladolidValladolid1833121237-2512


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!