Match Pack: Atlético Mancha Real vs Athletic Club (Copa R.32)

Athletic Club begin their Copa del Rey 21/22 campaign with a visit to Jaen, where they’ll face Segunda RFEF outfit Atlético Mancha Real. The Lions reached consecutive finals in the last two years and will be hoping to go on another good run in a competition they have won 24 times.

Match Info
Atlético Mancha Real (Round of 32)

Polideportivo La Juventud (Mancha Real, Jaen)

Copa del Rey 2021/22

Thursday January 6, 20:00 CET

How to Watch

Use our comprehensive TV guide to help you watch the Copa clash from wherever you are in the world.

Team News

Twenty-one players have been selected for the fixture. Oier Zarraga, Unai Nuñez, Iñigo Lekue, and Raúl García are back in the squad after recovering from COVID-19. Furthermore, Centre-back Dani Vivian is back in the fold after overcoming a hamstring injury.

Unai Simón, Yeray, Unai Vencedor and Oscar de Marcos are being rested and drop out of the squad.

However, Yuri Berchiche and Asier Villalibre remain sidelined due to their respective injuries.

Rubén Uría’s Comments

Assistant manger Rubén Uría, standing in for Marcelino, stressed that the Loins would be ambitious in a tournament which “means a lot to Athletic Club and to our fans”.

He also reiterated that Los Rojiblancos would not let complacency seep in as they face a side who knocked out Granada CF in their last Copa match.

Catch up on the rest of Rubén’s press conference here.

The Opponents

Atlético Mancha Real was founded on August 4, 1984. Last season they earned a place in the Segunda RFEF -the new fourth tier of domestic football in Spain.

In 2016 they won promotion to Segunda B, but a year later returned to Tercera, the same league in which they have spent most of the 21st century.

The Jaen-based outfit are currently sat in 14th place in the Segunda RFEF Group 5 with 18 points, after picking up five wins, three draws and eight defeats from their first 16 matches of the season.

Copa Adventures
This is the third time Atlético Mancha Real have taken part in the Copa del Rey and they have already surpassed their previous best performances. In the 2010-11 and 2016-17 campaigns they were eliminated in the first round.

It will be Athletic’s first ever official fixture against the Andalusians. To get this far, Pedro Bolaños’ side beat Dux Internacional de Madrid 1-0 in the first round and then caused a major upset by defeating LaLiga outfit Granada CF 2-0 in the second round.

Ready to Rock!
This year Athletic Club’s Copa promo video took inspiration from the ‘barrenadores’ (stone drillers), a revered profession in Biscay mines. Barrenadores would use long steel rods to manually bore holes into rock so that explosives could be layed in them.

Known as ‘Harri zulaketa’ in Basque, it was a tough job which required plenty persistence and determination. As technology advanced the profession became outdated, but in modern times it was revived as a sport. Teams race each other to drill a certain amount of holes into a huge concrete slab.

Hard work and a refusal to give up is part of Athletic’s DNA, and one of the reasons the Lions have won the tournament 24 times. The players will have to call upon the spirit of the ‘barrenadores’ once more as they look to go on a good run in this year’s edition of the Copa.