GUADALAJARA, Spain: Late strikes from Andreas Christensen and Marcus Rashford secured a hard-fought 2-0 victory for Barcelona against third-tier side Guadalajara on Tuesday, sending the Catalans through to the last 16 of the Copa del Rey.
Barcelona labored for much of the match at the Pedro Escartin stadium, holding over 80 percent of possession but struggling to break down a disciplined five-man Guadalajara defense.
The home side posed a constant threat on the counter-attack and frustrated the European heavyweights for long stretches.
Barcelona coach Hansi Flick introduced regular starters Pau Cubarsi, Alejandro Balde, Jules Kounde, and Pedri from the bench in the second half, seeking a breakthrough.
The changes finally paid dividends in the 77th minute when Frenkie de Jong whipped in a cross from the right and defender Christensen rose highest to meet the delivery, with his header deflecting off Guadalajara’s Julio Martinez before nestling in the net.
The hosts nearly produced an immediate response, with Salifo Caropitche unleashing a fierce drive from distance, but Barcelona keeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen — who was playing his first game for Barca since May — reacted superbly to tip the effort over the bar, preserving his side’s slender lead.
Guadalajara’s hopes were extinguished in the dying moments when Lamine Yamal played a sublime through-ball into the path of Rashford.
The English forward showed great composure, wrong-footing keeper Dani Vicente with a quick cut to his left before tapping the ball into the empty net to wrap up the result for Barcelona.
“These are tricky matches; they come out with everything they’ve got and we have to do the same,” Cubarsi told TVE.
“In the second half, we picked up the pace and moved them from side to side to tire them out. As the minutes passed, they grew tired, and that was the key point. They played spectacularly well.”