Barcelona player ratings vs Valencia: Ferran Torres is on fire! Robert Lewandowski replacement bags hat-trick as Lamine Yamal completes Copa del Rey rout

Barcelona's second-choice striker sent a timely reminder to Hansi Flick as they romped past Valencia to reach the last four of the Copa del Rey

Ferran Torres returned to haunt his old club with a first-half hat-trick as Barcelona thumped Valencia 5-0 in the Copa del Rey quarter-finals.

The forward, who was at Los Che between 2006-20, gave Barca the perfect start when he swept home Alejandro Balde's brilliant pass into the box in the third minute.

The ex-Manchester City ace - who came in for top scorer Robert Lewandowski - made it 2-0 in the 17th minute when he fired past Stole Dimitrievski, with the goal eventually allowed to stand following a VAR review.

Fermin Lopez got in on the act six minutes later when he raced onto Pedri's sumptuous floated pass, took it around the goalkeeper in consummate style, and knocked the ball into an empty net. Torres then bagged his third when he found the corner after a lovely lay-off from captain Raphinha on the half-hour mark.

Umar Sadiq looked to have pulled a goal back just after the interval, only to be denied by the offside flag. Their bad luck continued when the Nigerian won his team a penalty, before that was pulled back for another offside.

Yamal was inches away from grabbing a brilliant individual goal but his curling effort cannoned off the wrong side of the post. The 17-year-old did, however, get on the scoresheet when his deflected effort squirmed past Dimitrievski in the 59th minute.

The 'ole-ing' away support wanted a repeat of the Blaugrana's 7-1 win over Valencia in La Liga last month but in the end they had to settle for a 5-0 victory on Thursday night.

GOAL rates Barcelona's players from Mestalla...

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Goalkeeper & Defence
Wojciech Szczesny (7/10):
The Pole did not have a great deal to do but made some good early saves when the scoreline was more respectable. Plus, he commanded his area well.
Jules Kounde (7/10):
Didn't get that many chances to bomb forward but went about his work competently enough.
Eric Garcia (7/10):
One of the easiest nights he will have in his footballing career but when called upon he was solid.
Pau Cubarsi (8/10):
Made an important sliding challenge to block Fran Perez's shot when in a dangerous area. Was given an early rest as he didn't return for the second half.
Alejandro Balde (8/10):
Pulled off a delightful assist for Barca's opener and was a handful throughout. Also made way at the break to save his legs.

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Midfield
Frenkie de Jong (7/10):
Went about his work quietly and efficiently and may challenge Marc Casado for a starting spot soon.
Pedri (9/10):
Barca's midfield conductor beautifully orchestrated the feel and tempo of the game and popped up with some wonderful passes into the final third.
Fermin Lopez (8/10):
The attacking midfielder proved too hot to handle for Valencia and he took his goal in expert fashion. Can't do much wrong at present.
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Attack
Lamine Yamal (8/10):
Showed off some of his outrageous box of tricks but his goal was rather on the timid side. Still, he is so good to watch.
Ferran Torres (10/10):
The Spain international's clinical display will have reminded Flick that Barca have two top-class forwards at their disposal.
Raphinha (8/10):
The skipper bagged two assists in a hard-working and enterprising performance.

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Subs & Manager
Inigo Martinez (7/10):
Picked up where Cubarsi left off with an assured display at the back.
Gerard Martin (6/10):
Had a couple of struggles with Sadiq and gave the ball away once or twice.
Dani Olmo (7/10):
Was neat and tidy on the ball and looked lively in attack.
Marc Casado (7/10):
Worked hard and got stuck in during his cameo.
Hector Fort (N/A):
Didn't have much time to make an impact.
Hansi Flick (8/10):
Made a few changes, most notably Torres coming in, and they worked like a charm. His team were in ruthless form in the first 30 minutes and that put the tie to bed. Rested some heavy-hitters and gave some players an extra bit of rest with early substitutions.

Goalkeeper & Defence

Midfield

Attack

Subs & Manager