Messi set to miss 2nd opportunity at winning trophy as Sevilla beat Barcelona in Copa del Rey 1st leg semis

- Sevilla vs Barcelona ended in a 2-0 win in the favour of Julen Lopetegui's men at the Sanchez Pizjuan stadium

- Jules Kounde and Ivan Rakitic were the scorers in the game as Barca failed to find the back of the net

- Sevilla will play the Copa del Rey semi final second leg at the Camp Nou with a two-goal advantage under their belts

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Lionel Messi is on the verge of losing a second opportunity at winning a trophy this season after Sevilla take a 2-0 first leg lead over Barcelona in the Copa del Rey semi-finals.

La Blaugrana were beaten in the Spanish Super Cup final last month by Athletic Bilbao and they are now on the verge of missing their second trophy within a month.

Youngster Jules Kounde showed some flashes of brilliance in the build-up to the first goal as he skipped past Samuel Umtiti before putting the ball into the back of the net in the 25th minute.

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Ronald Koeman's men went in search for an equalizer but Julen Lopeteguis's side were resolute in their defence.

With five minutes left on the clock, Sevilla struck again through former Barcelona man Ivan Rakitic as he put the icing on the cake.

Barca's defence were caught napping as Oliver Torres' pass found Rakitic on the left before the Croatian midfielder ran a few yards to shoot into the roof of the net. 2-0 it was.

Rakitic refused to celebrate against his former club despite being told he was surplus to requirements at the Camp Nou last summer.

And that was how it ended as Sevilla will have a two-goal cushion in the second leg which comes up on March 3, 2020, at the Camp Nou.

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng had earlier reported that Lionel Messi took his free-kick haul to 55 following Barcelona's 2-1 win over Athletic Bilbao in the past weekend, The Sun.

But despite his impressive number of goals from direct free-kicks, Messi is still behind several players in the list of top ten players who have scored directly from a set-piece.

The Barcelona captain ranks higher than his fiercest rival Cristiano Ronaldo in this department. The 33-year-old is ranked 11th among the best free-kick takers in the world.