The power of teenage acne: the hot notes from Albacete-Barça

BarcelonaBarça are through to the Copa del Rey semifinals. The Blaugrana eliminated Albacete (1-2) but suffered until the very last minute, when Gerard Martín cleared a shot off the goal line to prevent extra time. Here are some immediate highlights.

The best possible relief. It had been almost 21 years since Barça had scored a goal at Albacete. You remember who scored that one, right? Indeed, the Albacete side was Messi's first victim in an official match. He was 17 years old, and the rest is history. At that time, Lamine Yamal wasn't even born. Not even Mounir and Sheila, his parents, had him in their plans. That's why it's so wonderful that the young man from Rocafonda, who sports the same acne Messi had back then, opened the scoring at the Carlos Belmonte stadium. He did it with a mature goal, the kind we expect from franchise players who play the full 90 minutes by default and rest whenever they want.

It's not just bad luck. He won't admit it publicly, but Flick didn't request Cancelo's signing. In fact, since the German took over at Barcelona, ​​he hasn't had much say in squad planning. He might suggest names based on what he sees in training, but he doesn't have the final say; that belongs to Deco, Laporta, and his all-powerful former brother-in-law. Nevertheless, the good man tries to use all the resources at his disposal, and in Albacete, against a Segunda División side, he started Cancelo at right-back. The gamble paid off, as the Portuguese player quickly picked up a yellow card and could have been sent off for another nasty tackle. Consequently, he was substituted at halftime.

Joan Garcia's priorities. It was one of the defining images of the first half. Puertas surged forward, and Araujo, true to form, used his imposing physique to prevent a dangerous situation for Joan Garcia, who ultimately caught the ball. The goalkeeper from Sallent could have quickly launched the ball forward, but instead, he focused on his teammate, thanking him for his effort in thwarting a scoring opportunity. He didn't hesitate to cross the byline with the ball in play. He prioritized supporting Araujo over preventing a corner for Albacete. What a good person he is!

An area animal. If Joan Garcia's affection for Araujo resulted in a corner against his team, it was from a corner in their favor that the Uruguayan scored his first goal since returning from his mental health leave. With an unstoppable header that sent Albacete reeling, he confirmed that he has little to improve when he enters the opposition's penalty area. His set-piece prowess is a very useful weapon in defense, but especially in attack, since no other center-back in the squad poses the same threat. The problems arise when evaluating his ability to play out from the back and his capacity to defend far from his own goal. That's why he won't start any important matches this season. He is, however, capable of winning a Copa del Rey match on a Segunda División pitch.