Espanyol will be looking to book their spot in the last-16 stage of the Copa del Rey when they make the trip to Segunda Division outfit Ponferradina on Tuesday night.
The visitors will enter the contest off the back of a 2-1 La Liga win over Valencia on Friday, while Ponferradina suffered a 2-0 loss to Real Oviedo in their last Segunda Division contest.
Match preview
Ponferradina have never been present in the top flight of Spanish football, but they are currently in their third straight season in the Segunda Division and finished a respectable eighth in the second tier last term.
La Deportiva reached this round of the Copa del Rey in 2017-18 but have never progressed to the last-16 stage and are therefore looking to create some history against Espanyol on Tuesday night.
Bolo's side have recorded back-to-back 2-1 wins over Cacereno and Ibiza to advance to the third round of this season's competition, but they are without a victory in their last three in the league, drawing with Leganes and Amorebieta and losing to Real Oviedo since overcoming Mirandes at the start of December.
A total of 37 points from 22 matches has left Ponferradina in fifth position in the Segunda Division, just a point behind third-placed Tenerife, while they are only five points off second-placed Eibar.
Espanyol, meanwhile, will enter Tuesday's match in impressive form, having won three of their last four matches in all competitions, including a 2-1 success over Valencia in the league on Friday.
Vicente Moreno's side are currently ninth in Spain's top flight, having collected 26 points from their 19 matches, and they will be looking to consolidate at the top level once again.
The reigning Segunda Division champions have had to win twice to advance to the third round of the Copa del Rey, beating Solares and Cristo Atletico, overcoming the latter 2-1 in the middle of December.
Espanyol have previous when it comes to this competition, lifting the trophy on four occasions, including in 2006, when they recorded a 4-1 victory over Zaragoza in the final.
The White and Blues have also reached the final of the Copa del Rey on another five occasions, and they are certainly capable of being dark horses in this season's tournament.
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Team News
Ponferradina boss Bolo is expected to make changes from the side that started against Real Oviedo on Friday, with Ricard Pujol, Paul Anton and Sergi Puig among those likely to be handed spots in the XI.
There could also be a spot in the final third of the field for Yuri, with Sergi Enrich potentially dropping down to the bench, but Dani Ojeda should keep his position ahead of Juan Becerra.
Joan Garcia and Fernando Calero would likely have started for Espanyol on Tuesday evening, but the pair are both absent through coronavirus, while David Lopez is still out with a knee problem.
There will be changes from the side that started against Valencia, with Oier Olazabal in line to start between the sticks, while Wu Lei, Didac Vila, Oscar Melendo and Miguelon should all come in.
Manu Morlanes is also expected to feature in the middle of the park, with Raul de Tomas and Sergi Darder among those likely to drop out, but Loren Moron could retain his spot at centre-forward.
Ponferradina possible starting lineup:
Puig; Adot, Amo, Copete, Pujol; Ojeda, Anton, Rodriguez, Saverio; Kuki, Yuri
Espanyol possible starting lineup:
Oier; Miguelon, Gomez, Cabrera, Vila; Merida, Morlanes; Wu Lei, Melendo, Embarba; Moron
We say: Ponferradina 1-2 Espanyol
Ponferradina are more than capable of making this a tricky encounter for Espanyol, with the La Liga outfit unlikely to be at full strength. The visitors still have a lot of quality in reserve, though, and we are expecting them to emerge victorious to advance to the last-16 stage of the competition. body check tags ::
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