Lionel Messi leads Barcelona charge against Real Sociedad as Iniesta and Busquets sidelined

Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez lead the Barcelona's 18-man squad for the second-leg of the Copa del Rey quarter-finals against Real Sociedad due to the injury absences of captain Andres Iniesta, Sergio Busquets and Rafinha Alcantara. Marc-Andre Stegen has also been rested to make space for third keeper Jordi Masip while Javier Mascherano also returns to the squad after missing the weekend's 4-0 victory over Eibar due to suspension.

The three members of the so-called 'MSN' attacking trident scored in the win over Eibar and are expected to play another crucial role to help their side book a place in the semi-finals after Barcelona secured a 1-0 advantage in the reverse fixture played at Anoeta last week.

But while the attacking trio of Messi, Suarez and Neymar are in blistering form, manager Luis Enrique still faces a dilemma in shaping his midfield due to the absences of another three important players comprising Busquets, Iniesta and Rafinha.

Mascherano is however back in the squad and could be ready to return to his original holding role to cope with the absence of Busquets in the middle of the park. Ivan Rakitic played in that position in the recent win over Eibar and could also be an option if Luis Enrique decides against making too many changes to his lineup against Real Sociedad.

Arda Turan, Denis Suarez, Andre Gomes and even the versatile Sergi Roberto are also fit and will fight for the two other positions in midfield to fill the gaps left by Iniesta and Rafinha.

Elsewhere, Luis Enrique has a fully fit defence to select from and could play Aleix Vidal in the right-back role after Barcelona technical secretary Robert Fernandez confirmed the club's decision to keep the wing-back until the end of the season despite barely playing during the first part of the campaign.

Jasper Cillesen, meanwhile, is ready to be Barcelona's number one against Real Sociedad once again as Luis Enrique continues his rotation policy between the sticks. Ter Stegen, who is the starting keeper in La Liga and the Champions League, will be rested to keep him fresh for the weekend trip to Real Betis.

"The Barça squad has been announced for Thursday's Copa del Rey quarter-final second-leg at the Camp Nou. It was already known that the injured Sergio Busquets, Andrés Iniesta and Rafinha would be missing out on the match with Real Sociedad, while Luis Enrique has decided to leave Ter Stegen out of the team for the 9.15pm CET kick-off as well," Barcelona confirmed.

That means a return to first-team action for Javier Mascherano after missing the weekend's league trip to Eibar through suspension, while Jordi Masip has also been called up for one of the two goalkeeping berths along with Jasper Cillessen.