FC Barcelona News: 7 February 2019

Barça 1 - 1 Real Madrid: Classic Tie Knot | FC Barcelona
Malcom Oliveira’s 57th minute goal cancelled out one from Lucas Vázquez just six minutes into the game as FC Barcelona came away from the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinals at Camp Nou with a 1-1 draw against their arch-rivals, Real Madrid.

Malcom scores on Clásico debut | FC Barcelona
That was quite some Clásico debut for Malcom! Not only did the Brazilian get to start the game, but he also notched up the only goal of the game. He was on the field for 76 minutes, being replaced by Carles Aleñá for the last quarter of an hour of the 1-1 draw with Real Madrid.

Pique: Mateu Lahoz had a strange criterion | Marca
Barcelona centre-back Gerard Pique played well as his side came from behind to draw 1-1 with Real Madrid in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final, yet he felt frustrated with the referee, Mateu Lahoz. The 41-year-old was inconsistent in his decision-making, and Pique felt most aggrieved by Madrid captain Sergio Ramos not picking up a second yellow card.

Valverde: Messi is fine, but we didn’t want to risk him | Marca
Barcelona started without Lionel Messi in their Copa del Rey first leg against Real Madrid and had to come from behind to earn a 1-1 draw at the Camp Nou. The Argentine featured in the second half but had been left out of Ernesto Valverde’s starting XI due to the thigh knock he sustained at the weekend.

Six years unbeaten at Camp Nou in Copa del Rey | FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona are still on course to win a record fifth Spanish Cup in a row, and as the comebacks against Levante and Sevilla have already shown this year, the Camp Nou factor has played a huge role in that. It was against Real Madrid in February 2013 that the Catalans last lost a cup match at home, and the record looked in trouble when Lucas Vazquez put the same team a goal up on Wednesday night.

De Jong intends to be like Messi and ‘never leave’ Barcelona as he prepares for €75m move | Goal
Frenkie de Jong is yet to link up with Barcelona, but the Dutch midfielder is already looking to emulate Lionel Messi and ensure that he will “never leave” Camp Nou. The 21-year-old, who has starred for Ajax since stepping out of a famed academy system in Amsterdam, is readying himself for a high-profile switch.

Chelsea want Philippe Coutinho to replace Eden Hazard | Sport
If Eden Hazard ends up leaving Chelsea to play for Real Madrid, Roman Abramovich wants Barcelona’s Philippe Coutinho to replace him, per the Independent. Chelsea have already signed Borussia Dortmund winger Christian Pulisic but they would look to spend some of their transfer haul on Coutinho.

Barcelona to renew Lionel Messi contract ‘when he decides’ | ESPN
Barcelona have promised Lionel Messi they will extend his contract whenever he feels the moment is right. Messi, only signed a new deal at the end of 2017 but president Josep Maria Bartomeu said the club are already prepared to further prolong his stay at Camp Nou.

Ajax raising the price of defender Matthijs de Ligt | Sport
What could make things trickier is Ajax raising the price of the defender increasingly. In recent days, Italian media say that after strong interest from Juventus, the Dutch club have put an 85-90m euro tag on the player’s head, at least 10 more than they had previously quoted clubs who asked about him before, including Barca.