Barcelona have taken the first trophy of the 2024/25 season by smashing arch-rivals Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup final at the stadium of King Abdullah Sports City in Saudi Arabia on Sunday evening.
Real took the lead through Kylian Mbappe in the fifth minute, but Barcelona responded fiercely and by halftime, Lamine Yamal (22′), Robert Lewandowski (36′ pen.) Raphinha (39′), and Alejandro Balde (45’+10) made it 1-4. Less than three minutes into the second half, Raphinha struck again.
Barcelona were left with 10 men on the pitch after goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny earned a straight red card in the 56th minute, and the free-kick he had conceded was taken very well by Rodrygo Goes, setting the final scoreline at 2-5.
The teams
Real’s defensive ranks are still depleted through a number of long-term injuries. Centre-backs Eder Miliao and David Alaba were unavailable, as well as right-back Dani Carvajal.
Rather than giving a chance to 21-year-old Raul Asencio, head coach Carlo Ancelotti trusted midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni to form the centre-back partnership with Antonio Rudiger, in front of Thibaut Courtois in goal. As usual, Lucas Vazquez replaced Carvajal on the right flank, and Ferland Mendy covered the left. Eduardo Camavinga and Federico Valverde were in the middle of the park, with Jude Bellingham further up. In attack, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo flanked Mbappe.
Goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen was the only notable absentee for Barcelona, and coach Hansi Flick chose Szczesny over Inaki Pena between the posts again. Centre-backs Pau Cubarsi and Inigo Martinez were flanked by Jules Kounde on the right and Balde on the left. Marc Casado joined Pedri in midfield, with the trio of Yamal, Gavi and Raphinha supporting Lewandowski up front.
Real hit first
Real took the lead after practically the first sign of an opportunity at either end of the pitch. Barcelona’s corner was cleared and Casado failed to stop Vinicius from launching a counterattack. The speedy winger rushed forward and involved Mbappe, continuing his run diagonally to provide the ex-PSG man with options, but Mbappe rightly judged he should go at it alone.
Having beaten Balde one on one, he expertly placed the ball past Szczesny into the net. 1-0.
Barcelona hit harder
Barcelona proved straight away that they would not be put off by going down early, and within 60 seconds Raphinha nearly equalized from a tight angle. They took possession of the ball and pushed resolutely forward.
Minute 22 had just started when Gavi went out wide and opened the space for Lewandowski to drop and receive Kounde’s pass. The veteran striker pulled Rudiger out of position and immediately released Yamal on the right, sending the ball between Tchouameni and Mendy.
Yamal flashed his pace and indisputably vast talent as he glided past Tchouameni, and before Vazquez could join the fray, he placed a perfect, trickling shot into the bottom corner, just out of reach for Courtois. 1-1.
Eleven minutes later, an inexplicable moment from Camavinga put Barcelona in the position to turn the game around completely. Kounde’s cross from the right picked up a deflection, and the Real midfielder apparently wasn’t aware of Gavi coming for the ball as he stretched his leg out, catching the Barcelona youngster studs-on-thigh. Interestingly enough, referee Jesus Gil refused to give a penalty at first, but at an intervention from the VAR room, he reviewed the situation on the screen and pointed to the spot.
Lewandowski was ruthless. 1-2.
What started like an tame-looking Barcelona attack in the 39th minute suddenly took a more serious note as Kounde spotted Raphinha’s run into the box between Vazquez and Tchouameni. As the cross came in, Ancelotti arguably paid the price for starting a midfielder in a centre-back role.
Tchouameni’s positioning left quite a bit to be desired and Vazquez was neither quick enough nor able to jump high enough to prevent Raphinha from hitting a fantastic header past Courtois. 1-3.
As Real sought for means to get back on track, it was deep in first-half stoppage time when Yamal and Raphinha organized a counterattack, finished off nicely by Balde. 1-4.
“Let’s see if we can start playing football,” Ancelotti told his players during the break, but Los Blancos were in for yet another shock very quickly. A move which started from Barcelona’s box, through several smart passes and good movement, had Raphinha in behind Real’s defence within a blink of an eye.
Though Tchouameni caught up with him inside the box, the former Leeds winger sold him a dummy before firing past Courtois. 1-5.
Real’s flickering hope
It was good from Barcelona’s point of view that they had managed to get so far ahead so quickly in the second half, because they had to play the final third of the match with 10 men.
A fine pass from Bellingham released Mbappe behind the backs of the Barca defence in the 56th minute, and the France international was caught on the foot, just outside the box, by the onrushing Szczesny. There could be no doubt about Mbappe’s fall denying a clear goalscoring opportunity, but the referee initially judged that no foul had been committed. And once more, Gil was forced to stop the play and put his finger on his ear, before going to the pitch-side screen. The decision was changed, foul given, Szczesny sent off.
Inaki Pena probably didn’t have enough time to warm up properly before marching out from the bench, with Gavi sacrificed to make way for the reserve goalkeeper, and it took its toll.
Rodrygo’s free-kick was strong and accurate, but it went into the goalkeeper’s corner and Pena probably should’ve done better. Even though he got a slight touch, he failed to divert the shot enough to stop it from going in. 2-5.
With 10 minutes added at the end, Ancelotti instructed Rudiger to go up and play as a classic striker. The German centre-back actually had one good chance, but he was thwarted by a brave reaction from Barcelona substitute Ronald Araujo. Mbappe then created one for himself by charging past Kounde and cutting inside from the left, but his shot towards the far corner only provided Pena with a chance to make up for his earlier mistake.
Reactions
Speaking at his post-match press conference, Ancelotti said he felt sad about the way his players performed, especially in defence, and admitted Barcelona deserved to win the game, and therein the Super Cup Trophy, because they defended better.
“We are very sad and disappointed. But that’s football; we return home with our heads down. Our sadness is the sadness of the fans. We are very sorry,” he apologized.
Meanwhile, the press have had their own reactions to Real’s debacle, and rumours have appeared that Los Blancos are currently considering whether to sack Ancelotti, as well as the candidates to replace the 65-year-old Italian. Reports elsewhere have, however, denied this claim.
As for Flick, one of the questions he was asked was to explain, if he could, how his team lost at home to the likes of Las Palmas and Leganes, and beat Real Madrid convincingly, twice.
“I don’t want to look back in time,” he replied. “Every match has its own intricacies.”
“We take it one game at a time, and the players already feel like we are a big team. That’s what matters. I am very happy for the team. We must keep pushing together and improve.”
There is little time for Real Madrid to grieve for the lost final, with their clash against Celta Vigo in the Copa del Rey set to take place on Thursday and the La Liga match against Las Palmas on Sunday. There’s even less time for Barcelona to celebrate, with their cup game against Real Betis taking place on Wednesday and the league match against Getafe on Saturday.
Real still have a five-point advantage over Barcelona in the Spanish top flight, but it’s actually Atletico Madrid who lead the race, one point ahead of their city rivals, exactly halfway through the campaign.
- Soccer News Like
- Be the first of your friends!
