MADRID (AP) - Barcelona picked up the pace in the second half to beat third-division club Unionistas 3-1 and advance to the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey on Thursday.
It will be the second straight last-eight appearance for the Catalan club, which arrived under pressure after losing the Spanish Super Cup final to Real Madrid on Sunday.
After being held 1-1 at halftime, Barcelona improved in the second half to secure the victory with goals by Jules Kounde and Alejandro Balde.
The hosts had taken the lead with a beautiful one-timer by Alvaro Gomez in the 31st minute before Ferran Torres equalized for Barcelona on a breakaway in the 45th. Kounde scored with a long-range shot in the 69th and Balde sealed the victory with a strike from a tight angle in the 73rd.
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"After a tough loss in the Super Cup we needed to rebound," Kounde said. "It wasn't easy, they have a good team and were very motivated."
Unionistas had a few chances to move closer toward the end, but Barcelona goalkeeper Inaki Pena made some good saves to maintain the comfortable lead at the 5,000-capacity Reina Sofia Stadium.
Barcelona defender Pau Cubarsi, 16, made his first-team debut by entering the match after halftime to replace Andreas Christensen.
Barcelona is seeking its first Copa title since 2021. It was eliminated by Madrid in last year's semifinals. The Catalan club is the Copa's most successful team with 31 titles.
Defending champion Madrid visits Atletico Madrid in the last round-of-16 match on Thursday. Madrid beat Atletico 5-3 in extra time in the semifinals of the Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia last Wednesday.
Unionistas had eliminated Villarreal on penalties in the previous round. Its best Copa campaign so far had been a round-of-32 appearance in 2020, when it lost to Real Madrid.
Girona, Celta Vigo and Real Sociedad reached the quarterfinals on Wednesday, while Sevilla, Athletic Bilbao and Mallorca advanced on Tuesday.
The draw for the last eight will be on Friday. The single-elimination games will be next week.
Unionistas de Salamanca CF
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