Barcelona(Spain), Feb 1: Thierry Henry scored the only goal of the match as Barcelona beat Villarreal 1-0 to reach the semifinals of the Spanish Cup on Thursday night.
With the first leg goalless, Barcelona went through 1-0 on aggregate after dominating the match in the Nou Camp. Friday's draw saw Barcelona paired with Valencia while Racing Santander play Getafe. Villarreal offered little threat and played the entire second half with ten men after Pascal Cygan was sent off shortly after Henry's 41st minute opener.Cygan went for tripping Lionel Messi as the Argentine star went on a mazy run.
Cygan had received his first yellow card for obstructing Messi and from the free-kick Deco curled the ball into the area and Henry was left unmarked to nod home the opener.
Messi was outstanding in the second half with a series of brilliant runs, once beating four men to set up Henry with a chance.
With 16 minutes remaining, Barca were awarded a controversial penalty, but Messi saw his spot-kick brilliantly saved by the outstanding Diego LopezIn the other quarterfinal played on Thursday, Racing Santander came from two goals down to force a 4-3 draw at Athletic Bilbao. Racing went through 5-3 on aggregate.