Barcelona qualify for Spanish Cup final

By Senhan Bolelli

MADRID (AA) - Barcelona advanced to the 2021 Copa del Rey (Spanish King's Cup) final, beating Sevilla 3-0 in the second leg of the semifinal late Wednesday.

Sevilla won the first leg 2-0 to have an advantage but Barcelona won 3-2 on aggregate over Wednesday's victory.

French winger Ousmane Dembele scored the opener for Barcelona in the 12th minute as the home team led the first half 1-0 at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona.

Sevilla were awarded a penalty over a foul in the 73rd minute, but Argentine player Lucas Ocampos' penalty shot was saved by Marc-Andre ter Stegen.

Spanish central defender Gerard Pique's header in injury time sent Barcelona to extra time as the result of regular time was 2-0 for Barcelona.

Sevilla were down to 10 men as Brazilian midfielder Fernando Reges was shown a red card in stoppage time.

Martin Braithwaite made it 3-0 with a header for Barcelona in extra time as his team reserved their place in the Copa del Rey final.

Barcelona have won the Copa del Rey 30 times in history to be the most successful club in this local tournament.

They last won the trophy in 2018.

The 2019 winner was Valencia, but the 2020 final was not played due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Barcelona will face Levante or Athletic Bilbao in the 2021 Copa del Rey final.

The first leg between Athletic Bilbao and Levante in Bilbao ended 1-1. The return match in the semifinals will be played on Levante's home ground on Thursday.