Athletic Bilbao Wins Against Levante, In the Final Challenge Barcelona

Athletic Bilbao are confirmed to qualify for the Copa Del Rey final for the 2020-2021 season after defeating Levante in the semifinals on Friday (7/3/2021) at the Ciutat de Valencia stadium.

Second leg semifinal match which was held at Valencia headquarters ended with a 2-1 victory by Bilbao. Bilbao also had the right to qualify for the final with a 3-2 aggregate victory because at the first meeting on February 11 at Levante the two teams drew 1-1.

In that match, Levante scored the first goal in the 26th minute. However, Inigo Martinez replied in the 58th minute so that the match ended 1-1.

Likewise in the second leg, Levante took the lead in the 17th minute through Roger Marti's goal using Ruben Rochina's pass. However, Raul Garcia replied through the spot in the 30th minute. The referee awarded a penalty after Levante's Oscar Duarte was caught violating Raul Garcia through a VAR replay.

Until the end of the second half, the score still lasted 1-1. Because the aggregate of the two teams is 2-2, the match must be continued to the extra time round.

It was in this extra time that Alex Berenguer appeared as a hero by scoring a long-range shot for Bilbao in the 112th minute. Until the end of the match no more goals were scored. As a result, Bilbao have the right to qualify for the final round following Barcelona's earlier qualification.

This match is a repeat of the Spanish Super Cup final where the two teams also met at the event in the final round. Bilbao won the match 3-2.

Had a two-goal lead through Antoine Griezmann's brace (40 & 47), but Oscar de Marcos and Asier Vilalibre managed to reply in the 42nd and 90th minutes. Inaki Williams' one goal in extra time (93 minutes) buried Barcelona's dream of winning. Will that incident happen again?

Athletic Bilbao Menang Lawan Levante, Di Final Tantang Barcelona

Athletic Bilbao memastikan diri lolos ke final Copa Del Rey musim 2020-2021 setelah berhasil mengalahkan Levante pada babak semifinal, Jum'at (07/03/2021) di stadion Ciutat de Valencia.

Laga semifinal leg kedua yang dilangsungkan di markas Valencia itu berkesudahan dengan kemenangan Bilbao 2-1. Bilbao pun berhak lolos ke final dengan kemenangan agregat 3-2 disebabkan pada pertemuan pertama 11 Februari lalu di markas Levante kedua tim bermain imbang 1-1.

Di laga itu, Levante mencetak gol lebih dulu di menit ke-26. Namun, Inigo Martinez membalasnya di menit ke-58 sehingga laga berakhir dengan skor 1-1.

Begitu pula di leg kedua, Levante sempat unggul lebih dulu di menit ke-17 lewat gol dari Roger Marti memanfaatkan umpan Ruben Rochina. Namun, Raul Garcia membalas lewat titik putih di menit ke-30. Wasit memberi hukuman penalti setelah pemain Levante, Oscar Duarte kedapatan melanggar Raul Garcia lewat tayangan ulang VAR.

Sampai berakhirnya babak kedua, skor masih tetap bertahan 1-1. Karena agregat kedua tim mnejadi 2-2, maka laga pun harus dilanjutkan ke babak tambahan waktu.

Di babak tambahan waktu inilah Alex Berenguer tampil sebagai pahlawan dengan mencetak gol tendangan dari jarak jauh untuk Bilbao di menit ke-112. Sampai berakhirnya laga tidak ada lagi gol yang berhasil tercipta. Alhasil, Bilbao berhak lolos ke babak final menyusul langkah Barcelona yang telah lolos lebih dulu.

Laga ini merupakan ulangan final Piala Super Spanyol dimana kedua tim juga bertemu pada ajang itu di babak final. Bilbao meraih kemenangan di laga itu dengan skor 3-2.

Sempat unggul dua gol lewat brace Antoine Griezmann (40 & 47), namun Oscar de Marcos dan Asier Vilalibre berhasil membalas pada menit 42 dan 90. Satu gol Inaki Williams di babak extra time (menit ke-93) mengubur impian Barcelona untuk meraih juara. Akankah kejadian itu kembali terulang ?