Barcelona secured their place in the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey tonight after knocking out Athletic Bilbao on away goals following a hard-fought second leg at San Mames.

Following a goalless draw in the first leg at the Nou Camp before Christmas, Barça faced a tough test to progress through but they came out on top after securing a 1-1 tie this evening. Defender Eric Abidal put Barça ahead in the 75th minute with his first goal for the club, but Fernando Llorente drew Athletic level 10 minutes later to set up a tense finale.

Athletic, who along with record-holders Barça are the two most successful sides in Copa del Rey history with 48 crowns between them, could find not find a second goal in the closing stages however as they tumbled out.

Barça, who won their 25th cup title when they beat Athletic 4-1 in the 2009 final, will now face the winner of tomorrow's encounter between Getafe and Real Betis.

Sevilla cruise
While Pep Guardiola's side were taken to the wire in their tie, holders Sevilla cruised into the last eight with a comprehensive 8-3 aggregate victory over Andalusian rivals Malaga.

Malaga coach Manuel Pellegrini, whose side were trailing 5-3 from the first leg away from home, gave three of his five winter signings a starting berth but it mattered little as Sevilla took the victory with three second-half goals. Ndri Romaric broke the deadlock in the 52nd minute when he found the top corner of the net with a thunderous 35-yard free-kick, before Diego Perotti doubled the advantage soon after with a close-range finish from Jesus Navas' low cross.

Malaga lost centre-back Weligton to a red card in the 72nd minute and Sevilla completed the scoring late on when Luis Fabiano curled a pinpoint free-kick into the roof of the net. Next up for Sevilla are either Valencia or Villarreal.

Lopez leads Deportivo
Deportivo La Coruna were indebted to striker Adrian Lopez for avoiding a scare at the hands of Segunda Division Cordoba, with the striker's hat-trick helping the Galician side record a 4-2 aggregate win after extra-time.

With the first leg finishing 1-1, Depor looked on their way out after David Arteaga put Cordoba ahead on the night in the 87th minute. However, Adrian, who scored both goals as Depor beat Athletic at San Mames at the weekend, slotted home a penalty two minutes later to send the game to extra-time.

Cordoba played the additional period with a man less following the dismissal of Miguel Tena at the end of normal time, and Depor made the most of their numerical advantage as Adrian netted twice more - the second with another penalty in the final minute - to complete his hat-trick and seal the victory.

Depor will now face Almeria or Real Mallorca for a place in the semi-finals.