Barcelona travelled to the Andalusian capital this evening to take on Sevilla in the first leg of the semi-final of the Copa del Rey at the Sanchez Pizjuan.
Both sides are still in the fight for European glory but off the pace in La Liga, so the Copa is the best chance either have of winning silverware this season.
Barcelona are in their first season under Ronald Koeman while Sevilla are into their second under Julen Lopetegui, with the Andalusians winning a trophy last season in the form of the Europa League.
Sevilla will be unable to repeat that trick this season as they’re set to face Borussia Dortmund in the last 16 of the Champions League, while Barcelona will play Paris Saint-Germain.
The Catalans are yet to win a trophy under Koeman, the closest they’ve come being their Supercopa de Espana final defeat at the hands of Athletic Bilbao.
The game started competitively, with Sevilla taking the lead inside the opening half-hour through Jules Kounde. The French centre back dribbled past Samuel Umtiti before finishing coolly.
Sevilla doubled their lead heading into the final five minutes, with ex-Barcelona man Ivan Rakitic scoring to give his club a valuable two-goal cushion that could come in handy come the second leg.
It just had to be…Ivan Rakitic! 😱
An outstanding finish against his former club doubles Sevilla's lead and puts them in the driver's seat in this semi-final tie 👀 pic.twitter.com/c6nZBMZyU5
— Premier Sports 📺 (@PremierSportsTV) February 10, 2021