Cup glory lies in the hands of the support actors

On Wednesday night Atlético de Madrid and FC Barcelona go head to head once again, this time with a place in the Copa del Rey semi-finals at stake.

Without a doubt, coaches Diego Pablo Simeone and Luis Enrique will choose full strength sides for their game, but with one exception: between the sticks for both sides will be a luxury second choice goalkeeper, custodians who will likely be number one at their clubs for many years to come, but who for now must make do with playing in other tournaments.

They came here to play..

The Slovenian Jan Oblak and the German Marc-André ter Stegen were signed by Atlético and Barcelona in the summer respectively to be the number one goalkeepers for their new clubs. But Colchoneros stopper Miguel Angel Moyá and Barça’s Claudio Bravo - also signed last summer - won the confidence of their coaches at the start of the season and have been number one choice for games in the Liga BBVA.

Oblak, a runner up in the UEFA Europa League last season with SL Benfica, had to wait until 16 September 2014 to make his debut for Atlético, in a UEFA Champions League match at Olympiacos FC. Neither the goalkeeper or Atlético enjoyed a happy night as the Liga BBVA champions were beaten 3-2. That game confirmed Moyá as number one and Oblak had to wait until a Copa del Rey game with CE L’Hospitalet in December to play again.

Ter Stegen, signed by VfL Borussia Mönchengladbach, also made his debut for Barcelona in a Champions League game, one day later tahn Oblak in fact, in a 1-0 win over APOEL FC. His next game was also in European competition, but the German stopper did not have his day as Barcelona were overwhelmed 3-2 by Paris Saint-Germain. Despite the result, Luis Enrique kept his faith in Ter Stegen, who played the entire group stages with Barcelona, playing six games and conceding just five goals.

Undisputed in the Copa del Rey

With Moyá playing in the Liga BBVA and Champions League, the Copa del Rey has become the only outlet for one of the most promising goalkeepers to showcase his talent. In the first two knock out rounds against L'Hospitalet and Real Madrid, Oblak had little to do and conceded four goals in 360 minutes. However, in the first leg match at the Camp Nou, the goalkeeper showed his class with an excellent save against Neymar and by saving a penalty from Messi, although the Argentinian managed to convert the rebound.

Ter Stegen, another young and promising goalkeeper, has also showed his quality in the Copa. The goalkeeper has kept a clean sheet in the 360 minutes he has played so far in the game, including the quarter final first leg game against Atlético. But without a doubt, the Vicente Calderón will be a tough test as well as a great stage for Ter Stegen to prove his quality again.