Sevilla upsets Lionel Messi-less FC Barcelona at Copa del Rey

Jan. 23 (UPI) -- Sevilla upset FC Barcelona 2-0 in the first leg of a Copa del Rey quarterfinal on Wednesday at Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan Stadium in Seville, Spain.

Barcelona played without star striker Lionel Messi.

The La Liga foes played a scoreless first half before Sevilla's Pablo Sarabia struck in the 58th minute. The Spanish attacking midfielder made a far-post run on the sequence before being spotted by Quincy Promes.

The Dutch forward sent a cross through the box, leading his teammate into a right-footed half volley for first blood.

Wissam Ben Yedder had the honor of throwing some dirt on the La Liga leaders. Argentine midfielder Ever Banega first took a shot, but the ball was deflected by a defender. Ben Yedder managed to track the ball down at the far-post and tapped it past Barcelona keeper Jasper Cillessen for the game's final tally.

Barcelona now trails 2-0 in aggregate to Sevilla entering its second leg matchup in Copa del Rey on Wednesday at Camp Nou in Barcelona. Barcelona battles Girona in La Liga before that matchup at 10:15 a.m. on Sunday at Estadi Montilivi in Girona, Spain.