\Barcelona gave no quarter to Valencia in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semifinal at the Camp Nou, taking advantage of a passive display from Gary Neville's side to ruthlessly hammer them 7-0. There were eye-catching performances all over the pitch from the Catalans.
Lionel Messi reduced Los Che to 10 men, won a penalty and scored a hat trick in another one of his great individual showings, but the Argentinean's escapades up front were rivaled by one of his forward teammates. That man was Luis Suarez, who scored four goals, played a key part in the build-up to two more, and was consistently selfless in creating chance after chance for his companions. He now has 35 strikes in 33 games for Barca this season.
Just as impressive was Sergio Busquets, who was perfect in his decision making over the course of 90 minutes. Carrying out a midfield masterclass, the pivot repeatedly split Valencia in half with his passing, and when asked to win the ball his timing was also impeccable.
Other honourable mentions go to Andres Iniesta, who was constantly involved in attacks during his 45 minutes on the pitch, and Jeremy Mathieu, who was authoritative any time Valencia tried to break.
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