The 2014 Copa del Rey final was the 112th final of Spain's premier football cup since its establishment (including two seasons where two rival editions were played). The match was an El Clásico between Real Madrid and Barcelona on 15 April 2014 at Mestalla in Valencia, making it the seventh such Copa del Rey final (the most recent was also played at the Mestalla on 20 April 2011).
Real Madrid won the cup for the 19th time after a 2–1 win. In winning the final, Real Madrid went on to play against Atlético Madrid, the winners of the 2013–14 La Liga season, in the 2014 Supercopa de España.
Road to the final
Real MadridRoundBarcelonaOpponentResultLegsOpponentResultLegsOlímpic de Xàtiva2–00–0 away; 2–0 homeRound of 32Cartagena7–14–1 away; 3–0 homeOsasuna4–02–0 home; 2–0 awayRound of 16Getafe6–04–0 home; 2–0 awayEspanyol2–01–0 away; 1–0 homeQuarter-finalsLevante9–24–1 away; 5–1 homeAtlético Madrid5–03–0 home; 2–0 awaySemi-finalsReal Sociedad3–12–0 home; 1–1 away
Build-up The match was rescheduled to be played three days earlier than the original date as there was a chance that both clubs could have UEFA Champions League semi-finals the following week. Each team was allotted 20,000 tickets for club members. Real Madrid's top scorer of the season Cristiano Ronaldo missed the final due to knee and thigh injuries.
Real Madrid were appearing in their 39th Copa del Rey Final, with a prior tally of 18 victories, while Barcelona had won 26 of their 35 finals. The two teams had each won three of the six previous El Clásico finals: Real Madrid in 1936, 1974 and 2011, Barcelona in 1968, 1983 and 1990. The 2011 win was Real Madrid's most recent, having been defeated in the 2013 final. Barcelona had last won the cup in 2012.
Match Summary
After 11 minutes Real Madrid went in front when Ángel Di María's low left footed shot from the left went through Jordi Alba's legs and in off goalkeeper José Manuel Pinto's left hand. Barcelona were level in the 68th minute when Marc Bartra headed into the far corner of the net after a Xavi corner from the left.
The winning goal came with five minutes to go when Gareth Bale picked the ball up just inside his own half on the left wing and went past Bartra at a blistering pace (at one point off the field before running back onto the field) leaving Bartra in his wake, before running into the penalty area, evading more challenges and then composedly slotting the ball left-footed low past the goalkeeper from six yards out. Some football pundits labelled his goal as a masterclass, whilst Barcelona coach Gerardo Martino admitted that it was "difficult to see a player sprint like that at that stage of the game".
Details
GK 1 Iker Casillas (c)RB 15 Dani CarvajalCB 3 Pepe CB 4 Sergio RamosLB 5 Fábio CoentrãoDM 14 Xabi Alonso CM 19 Luka ModrićCM 23 Isco RW 22 Ángel Di María LW 11 Gareth BaleCF 9 Karim Benzema Substitutes:GK 25 Diego LópezDF 2 Raphaël Varane MF 16 Casemiro MF 18 NachoMF 24 Asier Illarramendi FW 21 Álvaro MorataFW 39 Willian JoséManager: Carlo Ancelotti GK 13 José Manuel PintoRB 22 Dani AlvesCB 15 Marc Bartra CB 14 Javier Mascherano LB 18 Jordi Alba DM 16 Sergio BusquetsCM 6 Xavi (c)CM 8 Andrés IniestaRW 11 Neymar LW 4 Cesc Fàbregas CF 10 Lionel Messi Substitutes:GK 25 OierDF 5 Carles PuyolDF 21 Adriano MF 17 Alex SongMF 24 Sergi RobertoFW 7 Pedro FW 9 Alexis Sánchez Manager: Gerardo Martino
See also El Clásico
References