Atletico Madrid struggled through a 3-0 Copa del Rey semi-final second leg defeat at Barcelona on Tuesday but scraped into the final 4-3 on aggregate. The Spanish champions almost produced a comeback for the ages after their 4-0 first leg defeat in early February, but fell just short at Camp Nou. Youngster Marc Bernal netted twice for the record 32-time winners and Raphinha scored a penalty as Barcelona tried in vain to claw back Diego Simeone's side's lead. Atletico, who clung on desperately in the final stages, returned to the final for the first time since 2013. They will face Real Sociedad or Athletic Bilbao, who meet on Wednesday in the second semi-final second leg. "We are disappointed but we can be very proud about the performance we showed today," Barca coach Hansi Flick told reporters. 

"It was an amazing game from us and we created a lot of chances to score even more goals. In the end it didn't happen and we have to accept it." Simeone insisted his team deserved to progress over the two legs. "We were close to getting back to the final (in recent years), and in this two-legged game we were better than Barcelona," said Simeone. Barcelona came out flying and Fermin Lopez's long-range effort just over the bar set the tone, as Hansi Flick's team threw everything they had at a potential comeback.