Copa Del Rey Preview: Espanyol - Barcelona

Pep Guardiola may have reason to tell his players not to take Espanyol for granted when the two local rivals meet in the first leg of the Copa del Rey on Wednesday evening in the Estadi Olímpic.

The Blanc i Blau may be struggling near the foot of La Primera but the installation of a new coach the day before the game may well see the hosts set out with a renewed vigour.

Mauricio Pochettino has been charged with turning Espanyol's fortunes around after his predecessor, Mané, was unable to do so during his short stint in charge, having taken over from Tintin Márquez just before Christmas.

Progress in the cup may not be paramount for the hosts of this encounter, but they will know what a good performance against their high-flying neighbours could do for confidence.

When the two teams met in the league at the same venue earlier in the season Barça took all three points with a late penalty after Espanyol had taken the lead and then seen a player sent off.

Tha manner in which the Blanc i Blau raised their game has meant that not only is Guardiola issuing rallying cries, he is also preparing to name a strong line-up to help his side make the second leg at Camp Nou next week more comfortable.

Differing Fortunes

One aspect that will be watched is security as the Blaugrana ultra group, the Boixos Nois, may be banned from their team's home matches, but they have announced that they will again be present here.

In the league encounter flares were thrown into areas occupied by Espanyol fans and there was criticism of the handling of tickets for the match that the group had attended to mark what they then believed to be the last game between the teams in the boundaries of the city of Barcelona.

Next term Espanyol will be playing in Cornellà-El Prat just south of the Ciutat Contal and nobody thought that the two teams would be meeting again in the Cup.

On the pitch, the two sides' form could not be more stark as Barça are unbeaten in the league in 18 matches and are just eight short of recording their best ever run.

For the hosts, their last league win came back in early-November while success in the Copa del Rey has come about against two lower league outfits in Celta and Poli Ejido.

The teams' last meeting in the cup, which was their 15th, came in 2000-01 at the same stage and after Rivaldo and Alfonso had scored for Barça at Montjuïc in a 2-1 win, with Raúl Tamudo netting for the hosts, the second leg at Camp Nou ended 1-1 thanks to goals from Frank de Boer and Roger.


RECENT FORM

Espanyol

18/01 A 4-0 Málaga
14/01 H 1-0 Poli Ejido
11/01 H 2-2 Almeria
07/01 A 2-3 Poli Ejido
04/01 A 1-1 Athletic Club
20/12 H 2-3 Atlético de Madrid

Barcelona

17/01 H 5-0 Deportivo
14/01 H 2-1 Atlético de Madrid
11/01 A 3-2 Osasuna
06/11 A 3-1 Atlético de Madrid
03/01 H 3-1 Mallorca
21/12 A 2-1 Villarreal


TEAM NEWS

Espanyol

Pochettino was given a boost on his first day in the job as club medics declared that Iván De la Peña can play again and may even be given a few minuts against the club where he rose through the ranks. Tamudo will be back in two weeks.

Barcelona

Guardiola has every player apart from Gaby Milito fit to face Espanyol after Víctor Sánchez was given the green light to appear. The squad will train at midday on the day of the game itself, after which the coach will name the 18 players for the trip.


PREDICTION

Having correctly predicted a big win for Barça at Depor on Saturday, this time it will not be such a one-sided affair as the hosts will not sit back and allow Barça to play their usual game. after a tentative start, this game will have a bit of everything.

Espanyol 1 - 1 Barcelona

Lucas Brown, Goal.com