Barcelona, Real Madrid to clash in Copa del Rey final

Barcelona and Madrid are set to lock horns in the Copa del Rey final at the Mestalla Stadium in Valencia after their 1-1 draw at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday night.

Jose Mourinho has confirmed his Real Madrid squad for the final and nineteen players have made the grade, but Lassana Diarra and Fernando Gago are both out with injuries. The midfielder has a hip problem, while Gago has an adductor tear.

The usual suspects are back in the fray with Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Karim Benzema and Mesut Ozil all included for the second Clasico after their 1-1 draw with Barca in La Liga on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Pep Guardiola confirmed Carles Puyol is fit to feature after weekend injury scare.

There were fears the Spanish international would not make the team after he was stretchered off against Real Madrid in Saturday's 1-1 Liga draw after he had a problem with his thigh.

It was his first game back in almost three months, and he could feature again after passing a training test on Tuesday. Anyway, the club confirmed Puyol is available to coach Pep Guardiola and has been included in the squad

Likewise, Mourinho talked to the press and said that both they and Barcelona have an equal chance of winning the Copa del Rey on Wednesday evening, and has also hit back at club legend Alfredo Di Stefano for disapproving of the tactics used against Barcelona.

During a pre-match press conference the Portuguese said "I don't want to say anything out of the ordinary because there is never a favourite in a final. Both teams have the same chance of winning. I hope we see a nice match and that everything in the stands and on the street goes down without incident.”

Likewise, Mourinho recognized that “These are typical words before a final, but I truly believe them. I have played in many finals against teams that have been either inferior or stronger than mine, but they have all been evenly balanced. That is the natural tendency of finals."

“This is my first final with Real Madrid, but I am relaxed,” added the 48-year-old. “I have experienced many matches like this one, which is why I am a lot more calm than a coach who has never been here before. Our confidence lies in our hard work to reach success in the form of titles. If we win, great. If we don't, we will continue working."

However, Madrid legend Di Stefano was not impressed with Mourinho’s tactics and in his weekly column in Spanish sports daily Marca wrote, among other things, that “Barcelona were a lion, Madrid a mouse”.

Reacting to those stinging words, Mourinho said: "He (Di Stefano) is one of the most significant people in the history of Real Madrid and I am nothing in the history of Real Madrid. But I am the coach and the coach is the one who decides.”

"I am the coach," he repeated. "What do you want to do? It's me. The decisions are mine."

Meanwhile, Barcelona have received some positive news with full-back Adriano available for selection following a leg problem. Sport reports that the Brazilian defender has returned to full match fitness again after spending the past few days on the sidelines, and is in contention to retain his place in coach Pep Guardiola's starting line-up.

Spain coach Vicente Del Bosque, who is in Valencia for the latest Clasico installment, believes both sides have what it takes to lift the cup.

"The two teams have plenty of resources with which to win, so anything can happen," he told reporters. "It's just one game and the two teams start on the same footing."

Madrid's last Champions League success came with Del Bosque as coach back in 2002, two months after the capital club had lost the final of the Copa del Rey at home to Deportivo La Coruña.

Full squads for today's final:

FC Barcelona

Goalkeepers: Valdés, Pinto.
Defenders: Fontas, Puyol, Maxwell, Adriano, Piqué, Álves, Milito.
Midfielders: Busquets, Keita, Xavi, Iniesta, Afellay, Thiago, Mascherano
Forwards: Pedro, Jeffren, Messi, Villa.

Real Madrid CF

Goalkeepers: Casillas, Adan, Dudek.
Defenders: Garay, Ramos, Carvalho, Pepe, Marcelo, Arbeloa.
Midfielders: Xabi Alonso, Ozil, Di María, Khedira, Granero, Kaká.
Forwards: Ronaldo, Adebayor, Higuaín, Benzema.

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