Copa del Rey draw: Mallorca-Real Sociedad and Atlético-Athletic, the semi-finals | Soccer | Sports

The Copa del Rey semi-final matches are already designed. The draw carried out at the headquarters of the Spanish Football Federation has scheduled a first duel between Mallorca and Real Sociedad, while the second will be a real anticipated final, which will pit Atlético de Madrid against Athletic Club. The Balearic Islands and Madrid will act as home teams against the two Basque rivals, as they emerged from the hype in first place. Real Sociedad and Athletic will play the second leg of these semi-finals at home. It should be remembered that this meeting will be played as a double match, on February 7 and 28, even if the two matches will not be played on the same day due to television problems. All four teams will look to advance to the grand final, which will take place on April 6 in Seville, at the La Cartuja stadium.

The crossover between Atlético and Athletic suggests, a priori, two high-tension matches. These are the two favorites to win the title based on their history, budget and track record. “It will be an enjoyable and hard-fought match. We are looking forward to this double match and with the hope of being able to reach the final,” said Mario Hermoso, Atlético defender. “We are playing against a team armed to win titles. It will be complicated. It’s true that people will have the opportunity to see the return at home, where we feel strong. I express the greatest respect, thinking only of the first leg and we will have time to think of the second leg. “C “is a rival made to win titles,” said Ander Herrera, midfielder of Athletic. Atlético have won 10 Cup titles, the last dating back to 2013 in a final won by the team led by Simeone against Mourinho’s Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu (2-1).

Athletic is the ultimate cup team. The communion of supporters with this trophy is impressive as we saw during the duel against Barcelona in the quarter-finals. The Basque team has won 23 titles, although the last dates back to 1984. Since then, it has been finalist in 1985 (2-1 defeat against Atlético), in 2009 (4-1 defeat against Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona) , in 2012. (3-0 also against Guardiola’s Barcelona), in 2015 (3-1 also against Barcelona), in 2020 (1-0 against Real Sociedad) and in 2021 (4-0 against Barcelona. If you enter the final, it would be his third in Seville, although on this occasion his fans could travel to Seville, since the 2020 and 2021 finals took place without an audience due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Mallorca are aiming for the Cup final under a veteran coach like Javier Aguirre. They won the title in 2003 by beating Recreativo de Huelva in the final (3-0). He was also runner-up in 1998 and 1991, losing both finals to Barcelona and Atlético Madrid. Real Sociedad wants to return to the La Cartuja stadium, where it won the Cup in a Basque final against Athletic (1-0). This was the 2020 final, which was played in 2021 due to the pandemic. The match took place without an audience and Real now wants its supporters to travel to Seville. Athletic wants it too, so a possible Basque final in the Andalusian capital would be played with an audience. Real is having a great season, as it occupies sixth position in the League, will play the round of 16 of the Champions League against PSG with home advantage and is in the semi-final of the Cup. match against Rayo. We must forget the Cup for the moment. We play with our fans and we want to win. We need it,” said Imanol Alguacil, coach of the San Sebastián team.

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