Out to restore a small sliver of pride in the wake of their Supercopa de Espana embarrassment, Barcelona drop down the divisions to tackle third-tier Unionistas in Thursday's Copa del Rey last-16 tie.
Xavi's side slumped to a 4-1 loss to Real Madrid in the recent Supercopa final, and their hosts - the lowest-ranked team left in the competition - will aim to prolong the Blaugrana's blues at Renia Sofia.
After Alfred Planas cancelled out an opener from ex-Barcelona academy product Ilias Akhomach, Unionistas goalkeeper Ivan Martinez denied both Alberto Moreno and Kiko Femenia from the spot, while the third-tier minnows found the net seven times from 12 yards to complete a remarkable upset.
Gernika and Sporting Gijon have also bowed to the superiority of Dani Ponz's men in this season's Copa del Rey, where Unionistas - who were only established 10 years ago - will be competing in the last 16 for the very first time, on their fourth appearance in Spain's premier knockout competition.
Two second-round exits and a third-round elimination at the hands of Real Madrid preceded Unionistas' magical run in 2023-24, and since being baptised in the sixth tier of the Spanish footballing pyramid, the hosts have firmly established themselves as a third-tier side.
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