The Round of 16 (Octavos) of the 2010-11 Copa del Rey (official name: Campeonato de España – Copa de Su Majestad El Rey Don Juan Carlos I, i.e., “Championship of Spain – His Majesty King Juan Carlos I’s Cup”) begins today.  Two attractive matchups will be televised in the US this afternoon, with two more to follow tomorrow afternoon.

The four teams playing this afternoon are among the top eight in the current La Liga table (Barcelona #1, Villareal #2, Valencia #4, and Athletic Bilbao #8).  As usual, all times ET:

Tuesday, Dec 21

Barcelona, of course, has been playing better than anyone–certainly better than any club right now, but perhaps as well as any club side ever.  So even though Athletic Bilbao is a strong squad, it’ll be a huge shock if Barcelona doesn’t win at home (the return legs will be played in two weeks, so Barcelona will make the trip up to Basque country then).  Interestingly, Barcelona and Bilbao are the two most successful clubs in the Copa del Rey.  Barcelona has lifted the Cup 25 times, Bilbao 23.  The two Madrid clubs are 3rd and 4th; see here.

Of course, it will be quite a shock if we end up with anything other than a Real Madrid-Barcelona matchup in the final this year–although last spring it was Sevilla vs Atletico Madrid in the final, with Sevilla lifting the Cup.

The other matchup this afternoon is quite intriguing: a Valencia squad that has advanced to the knockout phase of the UEFA Champions League, and sits 4th in La Liga (despite selling off star strikers David Villa and David Silva over the summer); against a Villareal squad that sits just above them in 3rd–what Side Lowe called “Villareal’s miracle.”

Two more matches will be televised tomorrw:

Wednesday, Dec 22