In a fast-paced Supercopa final, FC Barcelona beat Real Madrid 5-2 in the Clasico. Even the red card for goalkeeper Szczesny had no decisive influence in the end. Hansi Flick thus won his first title with the Catalans.
A football match like a firework: FC Barcelona earned the Supercopa title on Sunday evening with a show of strength, winning their first title under Hansi Flick and also clearly deciding the second competitive Clásico of the season in their favor. The game did not get off to a good start for the Catalans.
As in the 2-0 semi-final win over Bilbao, Hansi Flick fielded retired goalkeeper Szczesny in goal. Dani Olmo and Pau Victor were on the bench after the long saga surrounding their registration. Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti, who had seen his team beat Mallorca 3-0 in the semi-finals, also avoided any surprises in the starting lineup. The 65-year-old veteran put his trust in Camavinga in the center of midfield. Behind them, Tchouameni and Rüdiger formed the central defense.
Mbappé scores – and needs treatment for his ankle
In front of more than 60,000 vociferous spectators in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Barcelona got off to the better start, but Lamine Yamal (2nd) and Raphinha (5th) were thwarted by the excellent Courtois. Real’s response was short and sweet: the Whites counterattacked at high speed in front of goal immediately after Raphinha’s missed chance. Mbappé left Szczesny no chance after being set up by Vinicius Junior – 1-0 to Madrid (5′).
However, Mbappé needed treatment for the first time shortly afterwards and a few minutes later had a bandage applied to his left ankle, but continued to play. However, a curious scene during his treatment was symbolic: Real’s doctors wanted to carry out the treatment on the pitch, whereupon Raphinha grabbed the medical staff’s bag and placed it on the sidelines, where Mbappé then had to move a little later at the instigation of referee Jesus Gil Manzano (17′).
Real disintegrates before the break
Barcelona had obviously set their sights on something and were rewarded for their great effort and a clear advantage in terms of chances and possession after 22 minutes: Lewandowski laid the ball off Rüdiger into the path of Lamine Yamal, who pulled inside, ran parallel to the edge of the penalty area and, with no chance for Courtois, slid the ball flat into the right corner for the 1-1.
Just over half an hour into the game, the game took a complete turn: Camavinga fouled Gavi in the box, resulting in a penalty after VAR intervention: Lewandowski scored to make it 2-1 (36′), and just three minutes later, the in-form Raphinha made it 3-1 (39′). The Brazilian directed a pinpoint cross from Koundé into the goal with a powerful header to make it 3-1 (39′).
Real Madrid were no longer present in offense, it was only Barcelona, who scored the 4:1 even before the break in the long injury time: After a hair-raising corner kick by Madrid, the Blaugrana beat Real Madrid with their own weapons and quickly counterattacked: In the end, Balde pushed the ball into the goal from a few meters (45.+10).
Fast-paced in the second half too – Red card for
Anyone who thought the game would slow down after the break was in for a surprise. Not even three minutes had been played when Rodrygo fired the ball against the crossbar (48′). While Real were still mourning the missed opportunity, Flick’s team struck again with clinical efficiency: Raphinha ran past everyone, left Tchouameni standing, and then slotted the ball into the net to make it 5-1 (48′).
Just a few minutes later, there was a similar scene on the opposite side of the field, only this time the goalkeeper – Barcelona’s Szczesny – rushed towards the player in possession of the ball. However, the Pole was clearly too late against Mbappé and brought the Frenchman down in front of the penalty area. The VAR was activated again, which led to Szczesny being sent off (58’+2). This briefly created suspense again, because Rodrygo hammered the resulting free kick into the goal without any hesitation to make it 2:5 (61′).
Despite two big chances for the Whites (Bellingham, 90.+1; Mbappé, 90.+7), Blaugrana ran out clear winners in the end, celebrating their first title under Flick and, after the 4-0 La Liga win at the end of October, their second clear victory in a competitive Clásico.
