Gary Neville’s Valencia hammered 7-0 by Barcelona

Gary Neville’s management career at Valencia reached a new low in the Copa del Rey semi-final first leg as his team were thumped 7-0 by Valencia.

Luis Suarez scored four goals and Lionel Messi grabbed a hat-trick to add to the former Manchester United full-back’s pain following a tough start in Spain where he has drawn five and lost three La Liga matches.

Neville would have known that his stuttering Valencia side were in for a tough night against a strong Barcelona line-up, but even he wouldn't have expected such a one-sided first half. Barca were at their brilliant best right from the first minute, with Neymar, Messi and Suarez all producing sensational moments of skill to wow the Camp Nou crowd.

A quick-fire brace from Suarez and another strike from Messi ensured Valencia were 3-0 down going in at the break, but that wasn't the worst of it. Shkodran Mustafi's foul as last man on Messi just moments before the interval earned the centre-back a red card, sending Neville's side down to ten men with a whole 45 minutes of the game to go. Amazingly, it could have been even worse for the visitors, with Messi hitting the crossbar when unmarked inside the box midway through the half and Neymar striking the post with the penalty that came from Mustafi's sending off.

Barcelona eased back slightly in the second half, but there were still chances galore and it was little surprise when Messi added his second and then third of the night to wrap up his hat-trick.

Suarez wasn't to be outdone, first burying a superb header at the back post and then finding the bottom corner for a superb fourth to complete the rout.

There may be a second leg to come, but Barcelona are already through to the final of the Copa del Rey after this performance. Meanwhile, for Gary Neville his only ray of hope was the cup competition, but following this loss his job will surely come under further scrutiny.

7’– GOAL!Barcelona1-0Valencia: Luis Suarez opens the scoring for Barcelona, clinically picking out the far corner after Neymar had stolen possession in the centre of the park and picked out the Uruguayan on the break. 1-0 Barca. Nightmare start for Valencia.

12’– GOAL!Barcelona2-0Valencia: Wow, this is ruthless football. A chipped pass into the box is knocked back by Neymar into the path of Luis Suarez, and his shot is just as clinical as with his first goal. 2-0 Barcelona.

29’– GOAL!Barcelona3-0Valencia: Lionel Messi makes it 3-0 after a sensational dummy by Neymar wrong-footed the entire Valencia defence. Game over? Tie over? Probably, yes.

44’– BAR – Suarez's movement gets him away from the full-back on the break and he unselfishly squares the ball for the unmarked Messi in the middle. The World Player of the Year takes it on first time, but his lofted shot crashes back off the woodwork.

45’– RED – Messi is played in behind and Mustafi fouls him in the box. It's a red card for the defender and a penalty to Barca!

45’– POST – Neymar has had a brilliant first half, but he hides his face in his shirt after his attempt from 12 yards crashes off the inside of the post and flies wide.

57’ – SUB – This is pantomime stuff. Denis Cheryshev comes on for Valencia to be greeted by a huge cheer from the Barcelona fans. You have to feel for the on-loan Real Madrid man. It was he who got Real kicked out of the Copa, and now he's going to be on the receiving end of a second half shellacking at the Camp Nou.

58’– GOAL!Barcelona4-0Valencia: Lionel Messi bags his second of the night and makes it 4-0 with a cool finish into the bottom corner. A Suarez back-heel picked Messi out in the box and his shoulder drop left the defenders for dead, but the finish still needed to be good. It was, as always. 4-0.

68’ – OFFSIDE – Cheryshev has the ball in the back of the net, but the on-loan Real Madrid man has his goal ruled out for offside. Cue more howls of derision from the home faithful.

74’– GOAL!Barcelona5-0Valencia: Lionel Messi wraps up his hat-trick with a drilled finish that flies past the keeper before he could even move. That's 5-0.

83’– GOAL!Barcelona6-0Valencia: Luis Suarez grabs a hat-trick of his own, rising high at the back post and burying a downward header from a tight angle. That was not an easy finish by any means, but the striker made it look simple. 6-0.

88’– GOAL!Barcelona7-0Valencia: That is a ridiculous finish by Luis Suarez. Barcelona work the corner back into midfield and Turan picks out Suarez in the box, who hits it first time on the turn and squeezes his shot in off the post. 7-0.

Luis Suarez (Barcelona) – It’s hard to pick out a star performer from Barcelona’s front three, such was the brilliance of all of them, but Suarez’s two goal salvos bookended this stunning performance and it was he who set the tone for the evening. Every time he gets the ball in the final third you think he’s going to score, which must be absolutely terrifying for opposition defenders. There is simply not a better striker in the world right now.

Barcelona: Ter Stegen 7; Vidal 7, Pique 6, Mathieu 6, Alba 7; Busquets 9, Iniesta 8, Turan 8; Messi 9, Neymar 9, Suarez 9. Subs: Sergi Roberto 7, Bartra 6, Adriano 6.

Valencia: Ryan 6; Barragan 5, Mustafi 3, Santos 4, Gaya 4; Danilo 4, Parejo 3, Gomes 4; Joao Cancelo 4, Siqueira 5, Rodrigo 5. Subs: Feghouli 6, Vezo 5, Cheryshev 7.

What now for Gary Neville? The Copa del Rey had been Gary Neville’s saving grace during his time in charge at Valencia, but his side where naïve in the way they set about this game in the first half and looked utterly humiliated by the time the final whistle came around. Real Betis on Sunday offers a chance for three points in the league at least, but boy does he need them.

Lionel Messi’s hat-trick was his 34th Barcelona in all competitions, his 23th at the Camp Nou, his fourth against Valencia and his third in the Copa del Rey.

Luis Suárez is the only player from Europe’s top five leagues to have scored a hat-trick in three different competitions this season.

Neymar has missed four of his eight penalty kicks for Barcelona this season.

This was the first time Valencia have conceded seven goals in a cup match since 1928, when they lost 7-0 at Real Sociedad.