The Superclasico for a Superbarça! - Debrief and NOTES of the players (Real 1-3 Barcelona)

Largely superior to Real Madrid, FC Barcelona made only one mouth of Merengue (3-1) this Sunday in the final of the Spanish Super Cup to allow Xavi to win his first title.

First title for nearly two years for Bara.

A first title for Xavi since his return as coach! This Sunday, FC Barcelona won the Spanish Super Cup by outclassing Real Madrid (3-1) in the final Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The Catalans looked like they were playing too fast for the overwhelmed Madridistas.

Le Bara takes control

Unlike the previous Clasico, in La Liga in October (3-1), the Merengue this time had great difficulty getting into the game and suffered more and more against the moving and attractive Blaugrana. Logically, the first chances were in Barcelona and, after alerts from Araujo, too short, and Lewandowski, who missed the target with his header, the Pole set the target with a heavy shot that Courtois pushed back on the post! At the fall, Balde hit side. Real had been hot…

Gavi him again

In the tough, Carlo Ancelotti’s men however recalled their ability to strike at any time by Benzema, who wasted a great opportunity with a close range header… Then ter Stegen intervened by making a decisive exit in the legs of the French, finally offside signal. After this little Madrid highlight, Bara resumed their domination and were rewarded by opening the scoring by Gavi, at the conclusion of a counterattack (0-1, 33rd). Not enough to make the reigning Spanish champions react, who painfully finished the first act and bent again on a rapid attack concluded by Lewandowski (0-2, 45th).

Benzema saves honor

Returning from the locker room, Courtois maintained a semblance of suspense by winning a decisive duel against Dembl before closing the angle in front of Lewandowski. But, after a little weak time, the Blaugrana finally bent the match by Pedri, found by a sparkling Gavi and author of his second decisive pass of the day (0-3, 69th). This goal finally stung Real, who framed his first shot, before Rodrygo forced Stegen to send a nice flight. Finally, Benzema reduced the score during a late game less mastered by Bara (1-3, 90th + 3). Not enough to spoil the pleasure of the Catalans, who won their first post-Messi title since the King’s Cup in April 2021.

Match score: 8/10

Despite the relocation to Riyadh, we were treated to a warm atmosphere for this Clasico. Very intense, the first half hour was most pleasant. Then, we tended to see only one team on the field, but this Bara was attractive! Despite a prolonged light weather, the second period was also pleasant.

The goals :

– Following a high recovery from Busquets at the feet of Camavinga, Lewandowski is served in front of the box. The Pole serves Gavi, who arrives launched in the interval and goes to adjust Courtois with a cross shot from the left (0-1, 33rd).

– In the central circle, De Jong pulls away to tackle a ball that escaped him and he launches Gavi who rushes into the box, before temporizing against Rdiger and crossing for Lewandowski who crucifies Courtois with a flat right foot close range (0-2, 45th).

– At the origin of the recovery in midfield, Gavi is then served in the area by Lewandowski. The young midfielder sends a caviar for Pedri who emerges and resumes point blank at the far post (0-3, 69th).

– Served in the area by Ceballos, Benzema tries a recovery from the right but stumbles on ter Stegen, the ball comes back to him and the Frenchman adjusts the doorman from the left in force (1-3, 90th + 3).

Players’ NOTES

Maxifoot has assigned a score (out of 10) comments on each player.

Man of the Match: Gavi (10/10)

And to think that he is only 18 years old! This Sunday, the young Blaugrana nugget performed a simply exceptional performance. Above the lot, the midfielder had a mad ability to make the right calls, spring into the opposing feet and send caviars to his partners. With a goal and two assists, he logically finds himself involved in all of his team’s goals. His demonstration will be a milestone. Replaced in the 90th minute by Ansu Fati (not).

REAL MADRID :

Thibaut Courtois (5) : the Real goalkeeper lost three times, dropped by his defense. Due to his save on Lewandowski’s shot, which he deflected onto the post at the start of the game, then his parries against Dembl and the Pole on the way back from the locker room, it was difficult to throw the stone at him, however.

Daniel Carvajal (3) : a difficult evening for the right side, which gave the impression of stirring a lot of air for a very meager result. Put in the wind several times by Balde, the Spaniard often gave himself up too quickly, even if his aggressiveness made it possible to scratch a few balloons. Replace the 72nd minute with Nacho Fernandez (not not).

der Milito (3.5) : the Brazilian relieved his team several times by dismissing the danger in disaster, but the central defender was absent on the opposing counters. Imprecise in his reminders.

Antonio Rigger (3) : contrast match for the central defender, who does not play the shot that a on the opposing goals so badly but who does not manage to prevent Gavi from crossing twice. His poor positioning against Araujo could have been expensive at the start of the game.

Ferland Mendy (4.5) : a mitigating part for the left side. Admittedly, the Frenchman contained his compatriot Dembl rather well, but his contribution will have seemed too light, both defensively and offensively, except for his good cross for Benzema’s header.

Eduardo Camavinga (4.5) : new replacement at half-time, as in the semi-final, the Frenchman nevertheless showed a good reaction. For 30 minutes, the midfielder tore himself off to scrape balls and stop opposing offensives. But he was the cause of the loss of the fatal ball on the opener and then completely lost his footing… Replaced in the 46th minute by Rodrygo (4.5)not really more inspired than its partners.

Tony Kroos (3) : Pedri played regularly in the midfield and the German missed several interceptions which favored Bara’s counter balls. Outmatched in duels, he represents one of the symbols of the day’s breakup. Replace the 72nd minute with Marco Asensio (not not).

Luka Modric (4) : the midfielder clearly missed out on his match. Unable to exert the expected influence on the game of his team, the Croatian was never able to respond to the intensity put in place by the opposing midfielders. Replace the 65th minute with Daniel Ceballos (not not).

Federico Valverde (3) : the Uruguayan will have embodied a huge disappointment on this part. Whether in the first period as a winger or then as a midfielder, the Merengue barely existed. Disappointing when he should have embodied the liveliness that the middle of Real would have needed.

Karim Benzema (4) : purely anecdotal, the goal scored by the Frenchman at the end of additional time does not weigh very heavily when drawing up his balance sheet. The Ballon d’Or missed a big chance with a header at the start of the game 0-0 and then had a lot of trouble existing, even if his self-sacrifice ended up being rewarded in the last moments.

Vinicius Junior (4.5) : For a long time, the winger was the only Merengue to take initiatives and try to sound the revolt. By getting into it several times, Kound and Araujo however regularly blocked it to limit its percussion.

FC BARCELONA :

Marc-Andr ter Stegen (6) : long little worried, the Catalan goalkeeper stayed in his match and he made an important save against Rodrygo. Asked at the end, the German defeats Benzema for the first time but finally bows in two stages.

Ronald Arajo (5) : aligned in the right lane, the Uruguayan made some interesting climbs in the first period and missed the opener by a few centimeters. But he had more difficulty closing his side at the end when the merengue awakened. Replace the 87th minute with Eric Garcia (no not).

Jules Kound (5) : the central defender sometimes had trouble muzzling Vinicius but he got away with the help of his partners. The Frenchman did not blame himself but his positioning did not always seem optimal on the biggest opposing occasions.

Andreas Christensen (5) : solid in the duels and active in the recovery and in the rebounds of the ball, the central defender made a correct copy despite some mistakes such as his failing marking on the head of Benzema at the start of the game and his late foul on Rodrygo after returning from the locker room .

Alejandro Balde (7) : a big game from the left side who had a great time in his lane. The Spaniard has cold Carvajal several times and in particular on the action of the big opportunity of Dembl, where he crashes a sacred acceleration.

Gavi (10) : read the comment above.

Sergio Busquets (7) : while the opposing midfielders tended to really look their age, the Blaugrana captain managed to get out of the game by participating effectively in the pressing, which allowed him to initiate the opener. Valuable in transmissions.

Frankie de Jong (7) : a great performance from the midfielder who ate the opposing midfield with his desire and his aggressiveness in the duels and recovery, like the second goal he initiated by tearing himself away in the central circle. Author also of some projections which hurt the Merengue. Replace the 87th minute with Franck Kessi (not not).

Ousmane Dembl (5) : despite his good will and great efforts in the withdrawal, the French winger will have been the least visible of the Catalan attacking players. The fault Mendy and Rédiger who closed the merengue left lane well to limit its influence. The former Rennais still manages to pass once after returning from the locker room but comes up against a great Courtois. Replace 78th minute with Raphinha (no not).

Robert Lewandowski (8) : not successful in the zone of truth at the start of the game, with his header off target and the superb save by Courtois, the striker did not give up and he was rewarded with his goal before the break. Although diminished by a rib injury, the Pole gritted his teeth and delivered a great game by also showing himself to be valuable in the game since he found himself involved in all of his team’s goals and sent a decisive pass to Gavi.

Pedro (7.5) : in the first period, the Catalan winger was not far from being the best Barcelona player. Just in his passes and in all the good shots, the Spaniard multiplied the recoveries and displayed a very high volume of play. Rewarded by his goal at the end of the game. Replace the 90th minute with Sergi Roberto (not not).

And for you, who were the best and worst players of the match? Comment in the “comments” box below!

TECHNICAL SHEET
REAL MADRID 1-3 FC BARCELONA (mid-time: 0-2) – Spanish Supercup/Final
Stadium : King Fahd International Stadium (Riyadh)
Goals : Benzema (90th+2) for Real; Gavi (33rd), Lewandowski (45th) and Pedri (69th) for Bara.
Warnings: Mendy (32nd), Rodrygo (77th) and Valverde (82nd) for Real; Christensen (49th) and Araujo (68th) for Bara.
Real Madrid : Courtois – Carvajal (Nacho, 71′), Eder Milito, Rdiger, Mendy – Kroos (Asensio, 71′), Camavinga (Rodrygo, 46′), Modric (Ceballos, 65′) – Valverde, Benzema (cap.), Vinicius Junior
FC Barcelona : Ter Stegen – R. Araujo (Garcia, 86′), Kound, Christensen, Bald – Gavi (Fati, 90′), Busquets (cap.), de Jong (Kessi, 86′) – Dembl (Raphinha, 78′), Lewandowski, Pedri (Sergi Roberto, 90′)

Gavi opened the scoring and dazzled this Clasico with his talent (0-1, 33rd).