The games for the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey have already been planned. The draw at the Spanish Football Federation headquarters saw the first duel between Mallorca and Real Sociedad, while the second will see a real early final, pitting Atlético de Madrid against Athletic Club. The Balearic Islands and Madrid will face the two Basque rivals as home teams, having emerged first from the hype. Real Sociedad and Athletic will play the second leg of these semi-finals at home. It must be remembered that this tie will be played over two games, with the first legs scheduled for February 6th and 7th, while the second legs will be played on the 27th and 29th of the same month. The four teams will try to reach the grand final, which will be played in Seville at the La Cartuja stadium on April 6th.
The cross between Atlético and Athletic expects a priori two highly exciting games. These are the two favorites to win the title based on history, budget and track record. “It will be a nice, hard-fought game. We are looking forward to this double game and hope to reach the final,” said Atlético defender Mario Hermoso. “We are playing against a team that is prepared to win titles. It will be complicated. It is true that people will have the opportunity to experience the return home where we feel strong. I express the greatest respect, just think about the first leg and we will have time to think about the second leg. “He is a rival built to win titles,” explained Athletic midfielder Ander Herrera. Atlético has won 10 cup titles. The last was in 2013 in a final that the Simeone-led team won against Mourinho's Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu (2-1).
Athletic is the cup team par excellence. The community of fans with this trophy is impressive, as was seen in the duel against Barcelona in the quarter-finals. The Basque team has won 23 titles, although the last was in 1984. Since then, it has been a finalist in 1985 (1-2 loss to Atlético), 2009 (1-4 loss to Pep Guardiola's Barcelona) and 2012 (3-0 also to Guardiola's). Barcelona), 2015 (3-1 also against Barcelona), 2020 (1-0 against Real Sociedad) and 2021 (4-0 against Barcelona. If he gets to the final, it would be his third in Seville, although this time his fans are after Sevilla were able to travel because the 2020 and 2021 finals were played without an audience due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Mallorca is aiming for the cup final under the leadership of an experienced coach like Javier Aguirre. They won the title in 2003, defeating Recreativo de Huelva in the final (3-0). He was also a finalist in 1998 and 1991, losing both finals against Barcelona and Atlético de Madrid. Real Sociedad wants to return to the La Cartuja stadium, where they won the cup in a Basque final against Athletic (1-0). It was the 2020 final, which was held in 2021 due to the pandemic. It was played without an audience and Real now want their fans to travel to Seville. Athletic also wants it, so a possible Basque final would be played in the capital of Andalusia with an audience. La Real is having a great season as it sits in sixth place in the league, will play the round of 16 of the Champions League against PSG with home advantage and is in the semi-finals of the cup. “The most important thing is.” Game against Rayo. We have to forget about the cup for now. We play with our fans and want to win. We need it,” said Imanol Alguacil, coach of the San Sebastian team.
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