MADRID (Reuters) - The draw for the semifinals of the Copa del Rey in Spain has paired La Liga leaders FC Barcelona with their eternal rivals Real Madrid and ensures that this season will see three more ‘Clasicos’ in the space of a month.
Real Madrid will entertain Barcelona in the two-leg semifinals this week, with the return leg in the Camp Nou between April 4-6.
The most recent meeting between the two sides was in the Spanish Supercup held in Saudi Arabia on January 15th. Barcelona dominated that game and claimed a 3-1 win with goals from Gavi, Robert Lewandowski and Pedri, with Karim Benzema netting a late consolation goal for Real Madrid.
Real Madrid beat Barca 3-1 in La Liga in the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in their first meeting this season, back in October.
Luck has decreed that the two teams will have their second league meeting of the campaign in the Camp Nou on March 19, meaning they will face each other three times in a month.
The second semifinal is a northern-derby between Osasuna and Athletic Club Bilbao, with the first game played in Osasuna’s El Sadar Stadium and the return in Athletic’s San Mames.
Osasuna are looking to reach the final for the second time in their history (after losing to Betis in 2005), while Athletic are looking to make the final for the third time in four years.
The two sides met in Bilbao at the start of January, with a series of saves from Osasuna keeper Aitor Fernandez keeping Athletic at bay in a 0-0 draw.