In the end, it was too much for even Real Madrid to topple. Barcelona claimed the Supercopa de Espana final with a 5-2 victory over their formidable rivals in a bonkers contest on Sunday night.
Much like it last Classic in October, Barcelona scored four goals in one half. Hansi Flick’s rampant Catalans collected that top four before the half-time whistle at the Saudi Arabia-based showpiece, but Real Madrid did not go down without a fight.
Kylian Mbappe had opened the scoring before Barcelona’s blitz and forced goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny off on the hour mark. Rodrigo reduced the deficit to three goals, but Barcelona held on to win a trophy that will, if only briefly, distract attention. controversy that has surrounded the club late.
How the game developed
Barcelona had been warned. “Madrid are one of the best teams in the world in transition,” Flick stressed before kick-off.
Kylian Mbappe it took less than five minutes for him to justify the Barcelona manager’s fears, leading to a great counter-attack that started from a corner that Real Madrid initially defended. Vinicius Junior robbed Marc Casado on the edge of his own team’s box and pushed Mbappe away. The Frenchman did everything but leave marks on the turf as he raced forward, turning Alejandro Balde inside out before stabbing past Szczesny.
Despite the early concession, Barcelona he would not be deterred, taking control of possession and chasing the ball after every turnover. Lamine Yamal, so often the Catalans’ source of attacking inspiration, teased Flick’s cross with an incredibly fine finish. Tiptoeing down the right wing, Barcelona’s teenage sensation confused Thibaut Courtois with a neat back-end that raced into the bottom corner.
It played with a steady low hum in the background from the largely Real Madrid-Heavy crowd in Saudi Arabia, there was a roar of disapproval when the referee pointed to the penalty spot in the 36th minute. After a review from the side of the pitch, Jesus Gil Manzano agreed that Eduardo Camavinga’s dangling leg was enough to send Gavi down. Robert Lewandowski made no mistake from 12 yards.
Rafinha doubled Barcelona’s advantage within three minutes from the spot. The Brazilian roamed the yawn that existed in Madrid’s makeshift back line, lashing a powerful header past Courtois to make it 3-1.
The first half saga stretched to an hour as nine minutes of stoppage time were played. With the last blow of the endless half, Madrid had a short corner which was cleared by Yamal. The winger chased down fellow goalscorer Raphinha on a blistering counter-attack which Alejandro Balde, bursting in front of the left-back, finished with a drilled finish into the bottom corner.
Carlo Ancelotti tried to stem the bleeding with the introduction of Dani Ceballos at half-time, but the Spaniard in control was helpless as Raphinha added a fifth for Barcelona within three minutes of the restart.
Just when Flick’s side looked to be cruising towards another Clasico, their own flaws were exposed. Mbappe burst behind that notoriously tall backline and slotted the ball away from Szczesny. Barcelona’s back-up keeper hacked the Frenchman and was sent off following a VAR review. Rodrigo picked out the top corner from the resulting free-kick, ensuring that Inaki Pena’s first job as substitute goalkeeper was to get the ball out of his own net.
The pace of a match that didn’t so much ebb and flow as it fell violently from one end of the pitch to the other belatedly began to slow down in the final 20 minutes. Ten-man Barcelona reluctantly dropped deeper, frustrating a Madrid side who were crushed by a five-goal blitz either side of half-time.
See the player ratings from Real Madrid 2-5 Barcelona here.
The Line – Saudi Arabia’s grand idea of ​​a single city stretching 170km – could have been built in its entirety in the space between Aurelien Tchouameni and Lucas Vazquez when Barcelona scored their third of the night.
For all the glitz and glamor of Real Madrid’s attack, Rafinha’s free header was a stark reminder that half the team’s rearguard on Sunday night consisted of a defensive midfielder alongside an aging winger.
Tchouameni appeared to be towing an invisible caravan when he tried to clear Raphinha at the start of the second half, only to get the Barcelona vice-captain nowhere to make it 5-1. At the break that followed, Ancelotti substituted Vazquez for Raul Asencio – a youngster making his Clasico debut but at least familiar with the demands of playing in a back-four.
Ancelotti was the driving force behind Madrid boost for defense hiring in January, while the club look to save up for a summer spree. The Italian’s urgency will not have been quelled by a disastrous defensive display.
Rafinha sat out last year’s Supercopa final against Real Madrid, seeing his team-mates hammered 4-1, while enduring one of a number of injuries that have plagued his Barcelona career. Fast forward 12 months, and there was no way the Brazilian was going to miss Sunday’s show.
In a game that featured four players who finished at top eight of the 2024 Ballon d’OrRaphinha – a player who wasn’t even nominated for the prestigious individual award – outshone everyone else on the pitch.
Blessed with a tank that never goes empty and a mind as sharp as his change of pace, Barcelona’s rejuvenated vice-captain is enjoying the campaign of his career. Two goals and an assist in Sunday’s final take him to 30 goals in 27 appearances this season.
Mbappe was framed as the derision of the first Clasico of the season. The goalless striker not only failed to find the back of the net, but was caught offside eight times when he equalised. Only once did he force the assistant flag to be raised on Sunday.
The Frenchman, who opened the scoring with the kind of ruthless finishing that has eluded him for so much of the first half of the season, was initially ruled offside when he was brought down by Szczesny after the break. However, after a review, the semi-automatic technology vindicated Mbappe and led to an early shower for Barcelona’s third-choice goalkeeper.
Even in second-half stoppage time, with Vinicius watching from the bench and Ancelotti leaving his number nine for the full 90, Mbappe deftly raced past a blur of blue and red before slipping a strange Bellingham into the box.
While the overall result is one negative that can never be ignored, Mbappe can take many positives from his own performance.
Barcelona may have been the team to lift the massive Supercopa trophy in the Jeddah night air, but it was Atletico Madrid who emerged as the real winners this weekend.
Sunday’s final was so exciting, mainly because both sides have defensive flaws – including Barcelona. Madrid may have conceded five goals, but the Catalans gave up more shots – most of which came when they were level.
Diego Simeone’s Atleti watched the chaos unfold after going through Osasuna on domestic duty. That narrow 1-0 win represented a 14th consecutive victory – a new club record – and took Atlético to La Liga summit.
Simeone’s capital have just a cushion over their city rivals – Barcelona are six points back in third with all three teams having played 19 matches – but Atletico boast the best defensive record of any club in Europe’s top five leagues, let alone Spain.
