Barca brace for Almeria tie

Barcelona striker David Villa is not expecting a repeat of his side’s 8-0 win over Almeria when the two clash in the Copa del Rey semi-finals.

Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick as Barca crushed their La Liga counterparts at the Estadio de los Juegos Mediterraneos in November, but Villa is expecting Almeria to be much more competitive in the first leg of their semi-final on Wednesday.

“We aren’t thinking about the previous match with Almeria, which was very much in our favour,” Villa said.

“They are a team with a different manager, and every game is different. We don’t think that because we beat them 8-0 that this time it will be the same.”

“On the contrary, they have a lot of desire, just like me, and they have never got so far in this competition. We are both 180 minutes away from the final, so it will be a tough tie.”

“We have to respect Almeria. We are going to have to fight in order to go through. I hope that we can get to the final, and getting there is enough for us.”

Real Madrid or Sevilla will be waiting in the final, and Villa said either team would be tough to beat.

“Choosing our opponents is a bit too much to ask,” Villa said.

“Madrid have their history and haven’t reached a cup final in a while, and they are a great team.”

“Sevilla have been the team who have had most success in the cup over the past few years. That makes them a hard opponent too in this competition.”

Barcelona have a four point lead over Real at the top of La Liga, but Villa said they were not concerned about what Jose Mourinho’s side were doing.

“We don’t focus on our rivals. Obviously we look at their results, and if they don’t pick up points then it is much better for us,” Villa said.

“We have our fate in our own hands in every competition, and are happy with how we are playing. We have to keep on working.”