January 08, (THEWILL) – Barcelona reached the last 16 of the Copa del Rey on Sunday but were given an almighty scare by fourth-tier Barbastro in an entertaining 3-2 victory.
The 31-time winners took a two-goal lead through Fermin Lopez and Raphinha before Adria de Mesa pulled one back for the valiant hosts. Robert Lewandowski netted a penalty for Barcelona but Marc Prat smashed in a late spot-kick to ensure a nervy finale for Xavi’s men.
Barca took an early lead when Frenkie de Jong played in Raphinha, who cut the ball back for Lopez to tuck home. Replays showed Joao Felix had a goal harshly disallowed for offside when the score was still 1-0.
Raphinha made it 2-0 early in the second period before de Mesa scrambled one back to give Barbastro hope. Lewandowski’s penalty restored Barca’s two-goal cushion but Prat’s last-gasp spot-kick ensured a tense finish.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
