Copa del Rey holders Barcelona have been drawn against Atletico Madrid for the semifinals of this season's competition.
The Catalan giants beat Real Sociedad 5-2 on Thursday to progress 6-2 on aggregate to reach the last four of the Copa for the seventh year in a row. The Vicente Calderon Stadium will be the venue for the first leg.
"They are one of the best teams in the world," said Atletico Madrid midfielder Koke, who spoke live after the draw. "It's going to be a beautiful challenge. I think details are what make the difference in this type of tie and we hope to go all the way."
Atletico are through to the semifinals for the first time since the 2012-13 campaign, the last time they lifted the Copa.
�� [LATEST] Barça will face Atlético Madrid in the Copa del Rey semi-finals #FCBLive #CopaFCB pic.twitter.com/wwh8YNn5ya
- FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) January 27, 2017
The Rojiblancos, who held Barcelona to a 1-1 draw at the Camp Nou in La Liga on Sep. 21, eliminated Eibar with a 5-2 aggregate score in the previous round.
"The two teams know each other well," Barcelona right-back Sergi Roberto said after the draw. "Small details count and to play away from home the first leg means it is important for us to score. "We have to play two great games because Atletico demands the most from us."
Celta Vigo had a shock result by eliminating Real Madrid from the competition and face Deportivo Alaves next, with the opening leg played at their Balaidos stadium.
The Galician side held Zinedine Zidane's side to a 2-2 draw this week for a 4-3 aggregate victory to reach the last four for a second straight year.
Celta captain Hugo Mallo is hopeful his team can lift the Copa for the first time.
"It's going to be a balanced and difficult tie," he said. "We recently faced them [Celta won 1-0 at home on Jan. 15] in La Liga and it was our hardest game at home.
"It would be great to lift the Copa."
Alaves eliminated second division side Alcorcon in the quarterfinals and are in the last four for the fifth time in the club's history.
"We are very enthusiastic," Alaves captain Manu Garcia said. "They beat us recently in the league but we hope to get a good result in order to keep our options open when we host them in the return leg." The opening legs are on Feb 1 with the return legs a week later.
The final will take place on May 27.