The former Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas has said that he is extremely confident that Barcelona will be able to get past Malaga in the second leg of the quarter-final clash between the two clubs. Barcelona will be coming up against Malaga in the quarter-final stage of the Copa del Rey looking to overcome a team that managed a 2-2 draw in the first leg. Barcelona looked home and dry in the first leg itself when they managed to take a two-goal advantage before the second half. However, a fantastic second half from Malaga meant that the game finished 2-2.
As a result, Malaga come into the match tonight with real confidence especially since they are playing at home. The Copa del Rey remains as one of the important competitions in Spain, and Barcelona have expressed their desire to win this tournament. The midfielder Xavi has been speaking recently about the possibility of matching the achievements of 2008/09 season when they managed to win six trophies during the year. Barcelona come into the encounter on the back of a poor run of form, which has seen them not win the match in the last two. They have also suffered their first league defeat of the season at the hands of Real Sociedad.
“It is our most important match so far this season – it is our first final. We will approach it like any other difficult game. We cannot lose our identity. When you play so many games against the same opponent, you obviously know them well. Little things could make the difference. We already played a great game in Malaga, and in the first leg we could have scored more goals. We have to be confident that we can get a result even though they will not make it easy for us,” said Fabregas.