Barcelona suffers shock exit in first round of Copa del Rey

Madrid:

Forward Oscar Olles scored the only goal in extra time to help third division Gramenet beat FC Barcelona 1-0 and eliminate the Catalan giant from the first round of the Copa del Rey. In two other major first-round surprises, league champion Valencia lost to second-division Lleida 1-0 on a 74th-minute goal by substitute Albert Crusat, while second division Gimnastic Tarragona eliminated Copa del Rey holder Zaragoza 2-1. The other top-flight team knocked out by lower league opposition yesterday was Espanyol, which lost on penalties to second division Terrassa after a 1-1 draw. However, first division teams Atletico Madrid, Numancia, Malaga, Real Sociedad, Athletic Bilbao, Levante, Racing Santander, Sevilla, Albacete, Mallorca, Real Betis and Getafe all progressed. Other lower-league sides to advance were Mirandes, Elche, Ciudad de Murcia, Cadiz, Lorca, Cultural Leonesa, Valladolid, Tenerife, Lanzarote and Pontevedra. Three more top-flight teams advanced on Tuesday. Real Madrid squeezed past third division Leganes 2-1, Deportivo La Coruna beat fourth division Cerceda 2-0 and Osasuna eliminated third division Castellon 4-2 on penalties following a 0-0 draw. Barcelona, which leads the Spanish league with an unbeaten record, suffered a dramatic lapse in form against minnow Gramenet. Lacking Brazilian playmaker Ronaldinho, Barcelona fell when Olles netted in the ninth minute of extra time from a pass by Ruben Blaya. Zaragoza, which defeated Real Madrid in last season's final, never recovered from Gimnastic forward Antonio Pinilla's third-minute goal. Midfielder Fernando Lopez killed off the game with a second goal in the 52nd. Zaragoza, which played the last 30 minutes with nine players after central defenders Alvaro Maior and Gabriel Milito were sent off, scored in injury time through midfielder Alberto Zapater. Valencia barely threatened second division Lleida and notched its fourth loss in the last 10 days. Crusat struck the home team's winner from a cross by Sergio Rodriguez to pile on the problems for Valencia's beleaguered coach Claudio Ranieri. Espanyol, Cup winners five years ago, lost 5-3 on penalties to second-division Terrassa after a 1-1 draw. Jesus Munoz opened for Terrassa in the eighth minute, with Espanyol's Argentine substitute Martin Posse leveling in the 80th. The format of the earlier rounds of the competition determines that lower-league teams are awarded home advantage. (AP)