Barcelona: The moment has finally arrived for Arda Turan and Aleix Vidal to get their chance to play for Barcelona.
The two will be eligible to play for Barcelona on Wednesday after the club finished its one-year ban on new players. They can debut when Barcelona host Espanyol in the first leg of the Copa del Rey, only four days after their crosstown rivals held them to a 0-0 draw in the Spanish league.
Despite being prohibited from signing new players by FIFA during 2015 for breaking rules regarding the transfer of underage players to their youth teams, Barcelona were able to secure deals with Atletico Madrid for Turan and with Sevilla for Vidal last summer.
Turan has only played two competitive matches for Turkey over the first half of this season, while Vidal has been limited to a friendly with Catalonia's regional selection.
Vidal said he was anxious to get back on the field.
"I am not thinking about Jan. 6 because I don't know when I will play my first minutes and debut," Vidal said. "Our coach knows we have been training for six months to be ready and at our fittest. It is in his hands."
Turan will help bulk up Barcelona's midfield and share playing time with Andres Iniesta, Ivan Rakitic and Sergi Roberto. The versatile Vidal can play at either right back or winger.
With Real Madrid disqualified from the cup for fielding the ineligible Denis Cheryshev in their opening match against third-division club Cadiz, Barcelona's biggest rival to defending their title is Atletico Madrid.
Here are some things to know about this week's Copa del Rey matches:
TOUGH DEFENCE
Espanyol relishe their role as the Catalan capital's underdog, lagging far behind Barcelona in star power and financial resources.
That's why their players and fans celebrated Saturday's stalemate with the European champions like a victory.
Espanyol's tough defending ended Barcelona's run of scoring at least one goal in its previous 30 league matches.
Barcelona will be seeking a commanding win at home before returning to Espanyol's ground next week for the return leg.
MADRID MATCH
Atletico also face a city rival when they visit Rayo Vallecano on Wednesday.
Atletico have taken the provisional lead of the Spanish league, and has a deep squad that coach Diego Simeone will likely use to rest some of his top players.
Rayo is at a low point after coach Paco Jemez said his squad "was not a first-division team" following a seventh Spanish league game without a win over the weekend.
SEVILLE CLASH
This round also features the always intense Seville derby between Real Betis and Sevilla.
A little over two weeks ago, the rivals sealed a 0-0 draw in the league in a testy match that saw far more fouls than scoring chances.
Also Wednesday, it's: Athletic vs. Villarreal; Valencia vs. Granada; and Mirandes vs. Deportivo La Coruna. Cadiz hosts Celta Vigo on Thursday, while Las Palmas is at Eibar.
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