Valencia star sends message to Barcelona ahead of Copa Del Rey clash | OneFootball

Barcelona’s fantastic week was capped off by a narrow 1-0 win over Deportivo Alaves that helped the Catalan club bridge the gap at the top of the league table.

Barça’s focus now will shift to the Copa Del Rey, where they are slated to take on Valencia in the quarterfinal on Thursday.

While Barcelona will be tagged as the clear favourites heading into this game, Valencia star Javi Guerra has sent a strong message to the Catalan outfit in the lead-up to this riveting encounter.

This is despite the fact that Valencia suffered a 7-1 thumping at the hands of Barcelona earlier this year.

Javi Guerra’s message to Barcelona

Speaking to the press in the wake of Valencia’s recent win over Celta Vigo, Guerra voiced confidence in Valencia’s ability to defeat Barcelona.

The central midfielder highlighted Mestalla as a key element, which cannot be discounted by Barcelona.

“We really notice the support of our fans who encourage us in all the games. Why not go through to the knockout stage? Let’s hope it’s the same in the Cup,” said the Valencia midfielder (h/t Mundo Deportivo).

Barcelona will be looking for another thumping of Valencia this midweek (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

It must be noted that Valencia’s season has turned upside down since the arrival of Carlos Corberan on the touchline.

Under the Spaniard’s leadership, Valencia have racked up four wins in seven matches, with their most recent victory coming against Celta Vigo.

In light of Valencia’s surge in form, Guerra warned Barcelona that Los Che are a force to be reckoned with, especially when playing at home.

“In Mestalla, we are very strong,” said Guerra, who will likely play a key role for Valencia this midweek in nullifying Barcelona’s brilliant midfield combination of Marc Casado and Pedri.

When speaking about the prospect of facing Barça again, coach Corberan said Valencia must find inspiration from that embarrassing defeat.

“We have to go back to the wound that the Barcelona game left us in order to take advantage of it and give a better version of ourselves,” he said.