Valverde is serious about the Copa del Rey
Much has already been made of the importance of the Copa del Rey and whether taking the competition seriously can have a negative impact on teams’ Champions League exploits.
Ernesto Valverde made it pretty obvious what he thinks of the tournament by naming a very strong team for the second leg at the Camp Nou.
In came Lionel Messi, Ivan Rakitic, Jordi Alba, Arthur, Ousmane Dembele and Philippe Coutinho. Unlike the previous games in the competition there was not a single B team player in sight.