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Barca, Sevilla face- off in Copa del Rey finals today

Barcelona's Brazilian forward Neymar (L), Barcelona's Argentinian forward Lionel Messi (C-L) Barcelona's Uruguayan forward Luis Suarez (C-R) and Barcelona's French defender Jeremy Mathieu (R) joke during a training session at the Sports Center FC Barcelona Joan Gamper in Sant Joan Despi, near Barcelona on April 16, 2016, on the eve of the final of the Copa del Rey (King's Cup) match FC Barcelona vs Sevilla FC. / AFP PHOTO / LLUIS GENE

What you need to know:

Barca captain Andres Iniesta laughed off suggestions that a La Liga and Cup double is the minimum requirement for the Catalan giants to ease the pain of their Champions League exit to Atletico Madrid at the quarter-final stage last month.


Madrid. Newly-crowned Spanish champions Barcelona face Sevilla, fresh from winning their third consecutive Europa League, as both seek more glory in the Spanish Cup final today.

Another successful campaign for both sides will end as it began after Barca edged Sevilla 5-4 after extra-time in a thrilling season-opening European Super Cup final.

Indeed, Barca could end the season with four trophies in total having also claimed the Club World Cup in December.

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Barca captain Andres Iniesta laughed off suggestions that a La Liga and Cup double is the minimum requirement for the Catalan giants to ease the pain of their Champions League exit to Atletico Madrid at the quarter-final stage last month.

However, the Spanish international did admit Barca’s success of winning six La Liga titles and three Copas del Rey in the past eight years has provoked a relentless demand for more trophies.

“When you win a league it’s impossible for it to be a bad season. It will always be a good season,” Iniesta said on Saturday.

“This team always has the obligation to win in a final. We fight for all the titles each season, sometimes we win and other times we don’t, but the obligation to win is permanent.

“It is like that in every game we play, so imagine what it is like in a final.

“The club doesn’t allow errors, dips or not winning things and this will not change.”

Sevilla appear to have the significant disadvantage of having beaten Liverpool in the Europa League final just five days before facing Barca at Atletico Madrid’s Vicente Calderon.

By contrast, Luis Enrique’s men have had a free week since Luis Suarez’s hat-trick in a 3-0 win at Granada retained their league title.

Enrique insisted he expects to win, but warned that Sevilla’s experience in finals could pose Barca problems.

“I am an optimist, I think we are going to win,” he said. (AFP)






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