Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid – Predicted lineup and team news

Barcelona will attempt the near-impossible on Tuesday night when they welcome Atletico Madrid to Camp Nou for the second leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final, trailing 4-0 from the first encounter in Madrid. Kick-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. BST and the tie will be shown live in the United Kingdom on Premier Sports 1.

Hansi Flick’s side enter the match in confident domestic form: they sit atop LaLiga and are fresh from a 4-1 rout of Villarreal at the weekend in which 16-year-old winger Lamine Yamal stole the headlines with his first senior hat-trick. Yet that emphatic victory came at a cost. The club confirmed on Sunday that striker Robert Lewandowski sustained a fracture to his left eye socket and has been ruled out of the semi-final clash. Lewandowski’s absence leaves Ferran Torres as the leading candidate to spearhead the attack.

Defensive options are also limited. Eric Garcia is suspended after being sent off in the first leg, while Andreas Christensen remains in the latter stages of rehabilitation from a cruciate-ligament complaint. Frenkie de Jong is unavailable with a thigh or hamstring problem, and although Gavi has returned to training, he is not expected to be risked in such a high-stakes fixture.

With those absences in mind, Flick is expected to deploy a back four of Kounde, Cubarsi, Martin, and Balde ahead of goalkeeper Joan Garcia. Pedri and Dani Olmo should anchor midfield, with Yamal, Lopez, and Raphinha providing support to Torres in a 4-2-3-1 shape.

Atletico arrive with a commanding advantage, but Barcelona’s recent scoring form—exemplified by Yamal’s explosive performance against Villarreal—suggests the hosts will throw everything forward in search of an early goal that might just ignite a famous comeback.

Barcelona possible starting XI: Joan Garcia; Kounde, Cubarsi, Martin, Balde; Pedri, Olmo; Yamal, Lopez, Raphinha; Torres.