Barcelona stalwart Sergio Busquets is expecting a tough match when the Catalans play Villarreal in the Copa del Rey semi-finals on Wednesday.

After Marcelino Garcia Toral’s side were beaten 3-1 in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final at the Camp Nou, the Catalan giants will head into the match with a decisive lead.




Going into the cup match, Villarreal will be enthused following their 1-1 draw against La Liga leaders Real Madrid in their league fixture at the Santiago Bernabeu. With a view to their match against Luis Enrique’s side, Toral rested several of his first team regulars against the Madrid giants, which makes their solitary point against Los Blancos all the more impressive.

And Busquets, who recently extended his contract with Barcelona until June 2019, is expecting a tough match at the Madrigal.
 


“It will be a tough match because it's a semi-final second leg and both teams will be gunning to reach the final”, the Catalan was quoted as saying at a pre-match press conference by Marca.

relatedNewsStory

However, with Barcelona having taken a sizeable 3-1 lead in the first leg, the 26-year-old believes that Villarreal will look to overturn the deficit by playing aggressively and thereby give the visiting attack a chance to exploit the gaps in the Yellow Submarine’s defence.

“We've got a decent lead and they will have to come out and try to score.

“They won't shut up shop and that will work in our favour.”

A win or draw for Barcelona would see them reach the final where they will play the winners of the other semi-final between Espanyol and Athletic Bilbao.

Don't bet on football until you've visited Inside Bet! Interesting markets, top tips, betting facts – get all the info before you bet.