With a heavy aggregate of 5-0, Elche will try to make Barcelona's trip to the Copa del Rey quarterfinals a not so plesant one when they meet on Thursday at Martinez Valero Stadium. Los Culés may take this opportunity to rest some players and give others the chance to fight for a starting spot in Luis Enrique's lineup.
Elche's coach Fran Escribá requested the team's owners not to make this match too expensive for their fans, since it would take almost a miracle for them to win against Los Blaugranas. The team's officers determined that there will be free entry to the stadium for those that bought season tickets for La Liga. The green and white team will try to defeat Barcelona for the first time in their last 5 matches, where they have only managed to draw one game.
Controversy has not left Barcelona this year. With a practically solved matchup, coach Luis Enrique may present a "B" team to face their opponents, perhaps thinking about what's coming up next in La Liga and the Spanish Cup. The Blaugrana side will meet the winner of the Atletico - Real Madrid series in the quarter final stage, so the Spanish coach may be thinking about analyzing a few players that could come in handy and provide solutions to their up and coming season.
Elche will have to make it through this match without Damian Suarez, Pedro Mosquera and Garry Rodrigues, while Los Culés will not have Xavi and Neymar due to different injuries.
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