Barca won the King's Cup for the third consecutive time

Coach Luis Enrique had a meaningful farewell when he and Barca defeated Alaves with a score of 3-1 in the final.

Goals: Messi 30', Neymar 45', Paco Alcacer 45'+2 - Theo Hernandez 33'

Like many other matches, Lionel Messi was the one who opened the victory for Barca. The striker wearing the number 10 shirt dribbled the ball past Neymar and then curled a shot past goalkeeper Pacheco.

In addition to scoring directly, Messi also made his mark on two other goals through precise assists for his teammates. The Argentine star sparked the first when he passed very freely to the right wing to Andre Gomes, who crossed inside for Neymar to tap the ball in to make it 2-1. Shortly after Barca's second goal, Messi dribbled past four Alaves players and passed the ball to Paco Alcacer who shot one-on-one, beating Pacheco.

While Barca scored three goals, Alaves only managed one consolation goal. Defender Theo Hernandez, who will play for Real from next season, fired a direct free kick from 30 meters in the 33rd minute to score for the blue and white striped team.

Messi gave his coach a "farewell gift" with a goal and two successful assists. Photo: Reuters

If Luis Suarez had been available, Barca could have won by a bigger margin. The Uruguayan striker was injured and had to end his season one match early.

Without the threat of Suarez, Alaves played with more confidence than they did in the second leg of La Liga (losing 0-6 to Barca). At many points in the final, coach Mauricio Pellegrino's team boldly played an open game with the Catalan giants. If goalkeeper Cillessen had not been able to clear the danger in the 61st and 87th minutesfor Barca, Alaves could have scored a second.

Alaves attacked more than in the previous meeting, but still lacked the sharpness to level the score. Even without an important striker like Suarez, Barca once again proved too strong for the Basque team. Messi and his teammates controlled 70% of the possession and needed only one half to score three goals.

The action after the break was less exciting than the first 45 minutes. Barca continued to attack strongly but lacked accuracy in front of goal. Meanwhile, Alaves' counter-attacks failed to get past goalkeeper Cillessen.

At the end of the match, the score remained unchanged. Barca won 3-1 and won the King's Cup for the third consecutive time.

This is the 29th time Barca have won the King's Cup, a record. Barca's achievements are six more titles than second-placed Bilbao and 10 more than third-placed Real.

This year's Copa del Rey is also the ninth title that coach Luis Enrique has won with the Catalan team. The 47-year-old coach has won two La Liga titles, one Champions League, two other Copa del Reys, one Spanish Super Cup, one European Super Cup and one FIFA Club World Cup in three years in charge.

The end of the 2016-2017 season with the King's Cup was a beautiful farewell for Enrique. Wanting to rest for a while, he decided not to renew his contract and left right after the final.

According to VNE