Barcelona retained their Spanish Super Cup crown on Sunday night, edging Real Madrid 3-2 in a breathless Clasico final at the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium. Brazilian winger Raphinha was the hero for Hansi Flick’s side, scoring twice to secure Barcelona's 16th Super Cup trophy and deepen the pressure on Madrid boss Xabi Alonso.
After a cagey opening half-hour, the match exploded into life in the 36th minute. Fermin Lopez threaded a perfectly weighted pass to Raphinha, who ghosted behind Raul Asencio to drill a low strike past Thibaut Courtois.
Real Madrid responded in the second minute of first-half stoppage time through a moment of individual brilliance from Vinicius Jr. The Brazilian collected the ball near the halfway line, bypassed Jules Kounde and Pau Cubarsi with a nutmeg and a burst of pace, and slotted home his first goal since October.
The drama, however, was just beginning:
49th minute (First half): Seconds after the restart, Pedri found Robert Lewandowski unmarked; the veteran striker delicately chipped an advancing Courtois to restore Barca's lead.
52nd minute (First half): With the officials allowing one final attack, Gonzalo Garcia pounced on a rebound after Raphinha had cleared a Dean Huijsen header off the line. The ball clipped the bar and crossed the line to send the teams into the break level at 2-2.
The second half remained an even, high-intensity affair until the 73rd minute. Raphinha, drifting inward from the flank, unleashed a shot from the edge of the area. Despite losing his footing as he struck the ball, the effort took a significant deflection off Asencio, wrong-footing Courtois and nestling into the net.
Barcelona were forced to weather a late storm after Frenkie de Jong saw red in the 90th minute for a heavy challenge on substitute Kylian Mbappe. Real Madrid pushed for an equalizer that would have forced extra time, but goalkeeper Joan Garcia produced two point-blank saves from Alvaro Carreras and Raul Asencio to preserve the victory.
The win solidifies Hansi Flick’s dominance in Spanish football, having won all the finals he has played since taking charge.
"I am proud," Flick said. "In the first half, we played fantastically. Raphinha’s mentality is unbelievable. He missed the first chance, but his dynamic affects the whole team. Even with one player less, we fought together as a team."
For Xabi Alonso, the defeat adds to the mounting scrutiny regarding his future at the Bernabeu. Despite the loss, Alonso remained defiant. "The team competed well. We're not pleased with the result, but we can take positives from it. There's a long way to go in the season and we have to turn it around as soon as possible."
