Copa del Rey | Round of 16

Jan 15, 2025 at 6.30pm UK

Estadio de los Juegos Mediterraneos

Almeria vs Leganes

Match preview

Almeria will be playing in the last 16 of the Copa del Rey for the first time in five years after negotiating their way through three rounds.

After eliminating SS Reyes and Cultural Leonesa in the first two rounds, Almeria produced an impressive display to stun giants Sevilla in last week's cup tie at the UD Almeria Stadium.

Marko Milanovic scored early in the second period to cancel out Isaac Romero's opener, before Luis Suarez scored a hat-trick to fire Almeria to a memorable 4-1 victory.

After defeating a fellow Andalusian side in the cup, Almeria overcame another side from Spain's southernmost region, with Suarez, Leo Baptistao and Nico Melamed all finding the net in a 3-0 league win over Cordoba to extend their unbeaten run to 16 games in all competitions (W13, D3).

Sunday's win leaves Almeria three points clear at the top of the Segunda Division and in a strong position to return to La Liga after suffering relegation last term.

Rubi's side will have their promotion bid on hold for Wednesday's cup clash and will be keen to get the better of Leganes, especially with seven of their last eight games at home (D1).

While Almeria are looking to return to the top flight, Leganes are fighting to avoid an immediate return to the second tier after winning promotion as Segunda Division champions last season.

Leganes held relegation rivals Espanyol to a 1-1 draw on Saturday, with Seydouba Cissa scoring for the second league game in a row to cancel out Leandro Cabrera's opener.

The draw leaves Borja Jimenez's side in 16th place, three points clear of the drop zone at the halfway stage of the season.

Leganes will now turn their attention to Wednesday's Copa del Rey tie, where they will be playing in the last 16 for the first time in five years after navigating their way through the first three rounds.

After knocking out Cuidad de Lucena, Leganes needed a penalty shootout to overcome fourth-tier Estepona in the second round, before coming from behind to win 2-1 at Segunda Division side Cartagena last week.

As they look to reach the last eight for the first time since 2017-18, Leganes can take inspiration from the fact that they have gone five competitive away games without defeat - a run that includes a memorable 1-0 league win over Barcelona in December.

Recent Performance

Almeria Copa del Rey form:WWW

Almeria form (all competitions):DWWDWW

Leganes Copa del Rey form:WWW

Leganes form (all competitions):WLWLWD

Team News

Almeria head coach Rubi will be without the services of midfield duo Iddrisu Baba and Gui Guedes due to injury.

Gonzalo Melero will return to the Almeria midfield after serving a one-match ban for accumulating yellow cards.

Suarez will remain one of the home side's main attacking threats, having scored eight goals in his last four appearances, including hat-tricks in the last two rounds of the Copa del Rey.

For the visitors, Enrique Franquesa remains sidelined with a long-term knee injury, while Julian Chicco is a doubt with a muscle problem.

Midfielder Yvan Neyou and winger Dani Raba will be assessed after being sent off in the 1-1 draw with Espanyol.

Defender Jorge Saenz is set to return to the starting line-up after missing Saturday's league win through suspension.

Possible starting lineup

Almeria possible starting lineup:

Maximiano; Pubill, Chumi, Gonzalez, Langa; Lopy, Melero; Pozo, Suarez, Melamed; Baptistao

Leganes possible starting lineup:

Soriano; Rosier, Gonzalez, Saenz, Nastasic, Hernandez; Munir, Brasanac, Cisse, Cruz; De la Fuente