Cartagena, which is in a good moment in LaLiga SmartBank and is showing itself especially strong at home, will seek surprise by eliminating from the Copa del Rey, as it did with Racing Rioja and Club Deportivo Castellón, a whole First like Valencia, defeated by Espanyol in the last round of the domestic championship.
The game will put into play the pass to the round of 16 to a single match that the team coached by Luis Carrión will face, grown after beating Unión Deportiva Almería, leader of LaLiga SmartBank, by 0-1, a result that allows them to be the Eighth classified in the league championship in the silver category with 33 points added in 22 games and being one of the positions that give the right to contest the promotion to First Division.
The black and white coach will not count for the duel against the Ches with midfielders Sergio Tejera and Pablo Clavería, who have been infected by the covid although they have already tested negative, nor with the wingers Nacho Gil, sanctioned after being sent off with a red card in Almería, nor with Belgian Andy Kawaya, who, although he has recovered from a back injury, is seriously lacking in competition rhythm after being inactive for several months.
With that, it is expected that there will be a mixture of regular starters and substitutes with Frenchman Jerome Prior in goal and David Simón Rodríguez, David Andújar, Alberto de la Bella and Alfredo Ortuño also possibly in the field.
For Valencia, the duel means going up a notch in difficulty in a tournament in which until now much inferior rivals such as Utrillas from Teruel or Arenteiro have been measured, two teams to which they fell, although in the case of the Galician team not without difficulties since he had to do it in extra time and rescuing from the bench some more starters than those who started the match on the field.
In those two qualifying rounds, coach José Bordalás has made an effort despite casualties, sanctions and the need to rest, to pose very recognizable eleven, something that is taken for granted that he will do again against a team that separates him much less distances. It is not expected that he can give minutes to players he does not have, although he can give minutes to those who usually use as a kick-starter in the second parts.
Valencia, unlike their rival, faces this clash after the disappointment that they lost on December 31 to Espanyol in a match that could have allowed them to sleep in Champions League positions.
In the first two heats, it has been the veteran goalkeeper Jaume Doménech, one of the team captains, who has been under the sticks and it is expected that Almenara will repeat with the young Giorgi Mamardashvili on the bench and the Dutch Jasper Cillessen, starter in the League, off the list.
The coach commented at the press conference that he will still not be able to count on the injured Toni Lato, Gabriel Paulista and Dimitri Foulquier and that some players are still in quarantine due to covid-19.
POSSIBLE ALIGNMENTS:
Cartagena: Jerome Prior; David Simón, Pedro Alcalá, David Andújar, Alberto de la Bella; Bodiger, Richard Boateng, Álex Gallar, Dauda; De Blasis and Alfredo Ortuño.
Valencia: Doménech; Piccini, Diakhaby, Alderete, Gayà or Jesús Vázquez; Soler, Racic, Koba, Wass, Cheryshev; and Marcos André.
Referee: Pablo González Fuertes (Asturian Committee)
Stadium: Cartagonova
Time: 16.00 (DZAN)