The Catalans edged out Granada in an eight-goal thriller to advance to the Copa del Rey semi-finals.
Barcelona saw off Granada 5-3 in a thrilling Copa del Rey quarter-final encounter as Antoine Griezmann and Jordi Alba inspired an incredible turnaround.
Despite dominating the first half with some promising chances, Barca found themselves on the receiving end when Granada opened the account with the help of Kennedy before Soldado doubled the lead in the opening minutes of the second half. Samuel Umtiti was at fault for the first goal while the Barca defence was caught upfield for the second one.
The Catalan club pushed for the equaliser as Granada opted to sit deep and compact.
Nonetheless, Ronald Koeman’s men found themselves unlucky after Francisco Trincao and Ousmane Dembele were denied by the woodwork. Griezmann also had his overhead kick saved by Granada keeper Escandell.
As the game approached the final minutes, Barca scored back to back goals in no time as Griezmann and Jordi Alba were the rescuers, with the latter one finding the equaliser in injury time.
Griezmann netted a header – which marked his double – from Alba’s cross to go 3-2 up in the extra time but it was soon cancelled by Vico’s penalty at the other end.
The fighting mentality of the Catalan paid dividends as Frenkie de Jong scored the fourth goal before Alba completed his brace to put the game to bed.
Granada were left stunned by Barca’s incredible turn-around and the Catalan club have booked their place in the semi-finals of Copa del Rey.
Lionel Messi’s name might have missed the scoresheet but he put on an underrated performance, only for his shots to be saved and denied by the post.
