Sevilla, Athletic Bilbao and Mallorca advance to quarterfinals of Copa del Rey

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This article was published 16/01/2024 (993 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

MADRID (AP) — Sevilla left behind its Spanish league struggles on Tuesday, defeating Getafe 3-1 to reach the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey.

Athletic Bilbao also advanced, beating Alaves 2-0 to make it to the last-eight for the fifth straight season.

Sergio Ramos scored once and Isaac Romero twice to give Sevilla the road victory and put the southern Spanish club in the quarterfinals for the second consecutive year. Sevilla will try to make it to last-four for the first time since 2021.

Sevilla won its last four Copa matches but has only one victory in its last 14 league games. The team coached by Quique Sánchez Flores has 16 points from 20 league matches and sits only one point outside the relegation zone.

Ramos opened the scoring with a header in the eighth minute, but he failed to fully clear a cross that led to Jaime Mata’s equalizer from inside the area in the 23rd. Romero put Sevilla ahead again in the 48th and sealed the victory in the 55th.

Sevilla was eliminated by eventual runner-up Osasuna in extra time in last year’s quarterfinals. It lost to Barcelona in the semifinals in 2021.

Getafe, which is 10th in the Spanish league, was trying to reach the Copa quarterfinals for the first time since 2019. It hadn’t advanced past the third round since that season.

Sevilla’s next match is at Spanish league leader Girona on Sunday, while Getafe visits Osasuna.

VILLALIBRE LEADS ATHLETIC

Athletic defeated Alaves at home with striker Asier Villalibre scoring goals in the 28th and 60th minutes.

Athletic, sitting third in the Spanish league standings, reached the Copa semifinals the last two seasons, and was runner-up both in 2020 and 2021.

Alaves, 13th in the league, was trying to make it to the Copa’s last-eight for the first time since 2018.

Also Tuesday, Mallorca defeated second-division club Tenerife 1-0 in extra time with a goal by Canada striker Cyle Larin in the 120th minute, reaching the quarterfinals for the second time in three seasons. Tenerife was playing in the round of 16 for the first time since 2020.

In matches between first-division clubs on Wednesday, Girona will host Rayo Vallecano, Real Sociedad will visit Osasuna and Valencia will welcome Celta Vigo.

Defending champion Real Madrid will visit rival Atletico Madrid on Thursday, while Barcelona will visit third-division club Unionistas.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer