Madrid, 13 February (H.S.): Atlético Madrid delivered a stunning 4-0 thrashing to defending Copa del Rey champions Barcelona in the semifinal first leg on Thursday at the Metropolitano Stadium, surging into a commanding lead with all goals in the opening half through ruthless counterattacks.

The rout ignited in the 6th minute when Barcelona goalkeeper Joan García's catastrophic mishandling of Eric García's backpass allowed Ademola Lookman to bundle home the opener; Antoine Griezmann doubled the advantage in the 14th with a clinical finish from Nahuel Molina's incisive pass after a fluid team move, followed by Lookman's 33rd-minute tap-in from Giuliano Simeone's low cross via Julián Álvarez, and Álvarez's sublime top-corner strike right before halftime off Lookman's threaded assist.

Despite Barcelona's 70% first-half possession under Hansi Flick, Atlético's high press and defensive solidity neutralized threats; the second half saw Robert Lewandowski's introduction fail to spark revival, with Pau Cubarsí's 52nd-minute free-kick rebound goal disallowed after protracted VAR offside scrutiny, and Barcelona's Eric García red-carded in the 86th for fouling Alex Baena—upgraded from yellow.Atlético defender Marcos Llorente lauded the insane display of watertight defending, pressing, and space exploitation against Barça; the return leg looms March 3 at Camp Nou, where the victor faces Real Sociedad (1-0 aggregate lead) or Athletic Bilbao in the April Seville final.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar