Football: Copa Del Rey First Round Promises Glory Of The Cup But Few Upsets

Football: Copa del Rey first round promises glory of the Cup but few upsets (Barcelona: La Liga - FC Barcelona vs Racing Santander)

Spanish Super Cup:  The first-round draw for the Spanish Copa del Rey was made on Monday, pitting some of the country's biggest clubs against amateur and semi-professional sides.

The first two rounds do not include the four clubs that will play in the Spanish Super Cup in February, with FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and reigning Copa del Rey holder Real Sociedad entering at the Round of 32.

However, the draw does include teams such as 2024 Cup winner Athletic Bilbao, as well as Real Betis, Villarreal, Sevilla and Valencia, reports Xinhua.

The first round also features 10 teams from Spain's regional leagues that came through a preliminary round, with those sides guaranteed a lucrative home tie against higher-level opposition.

Eight of the teams to play in the first round were decided this weekend, although the return leg between Prat and San Rafael was postponed due to weather-related travel disruption, while the match between Guimar and Sporting Hortaleza was suspended following violent scenes in which the Guimar coach was allegedly assaulted during the warm-up.

The first round will be played over three days from October 27 to 29. Although no team from the sixth tier of Spanish football has ever knocked out a top-flight opponent, the round traditionally provides some of the competition's biggest contrasts.

In addition to the 10 matches involving regional-level sides, La Liga clubs Levante and Villarreal face opponents from RFEF III, the fifth tier. Villarreal travels to Mallorca to face Manacor, hometown of tennis great Rafael Nadal, while Levante plays Tarancon.

Betis, Espanyol, Celta Vigo and Rayo Vallecano face opponents from RFEF II, the fourth tier. Rayo visits Recreativo Huelva, Spain's oldest football club, while Betis takes on Navalcarnero.

Espanyol faces a potentially tricky trip to Sestao River on the outskirts of Bilbao, while Celta Vigo travels to face Salamanca CF UDS, now coached by former Athletic Bilbao captain Iker Muniain, who lifted the Copa del Rey with his former club less than two and a half years ago.

Copa del Rey first-round ties involving La Liga sides:

Espanyol faces a potentially tricky trip to Sestao River on the outskirts of Bilbao, while Celta Vigo travels to face Salamanca CF UDS, now coached by former Athletic Bilbao captain Iker Muniain, who lifted the Copa del Rey with his former club less than two and a half years ago.

Article Source: IANS