Spanish Super Cup: Real beat Barcelona 3-2 to reach final
Real Madrid have qualified for the showdown of the Spanish Super Cup after seeing off traditional rivals Barcelona in extra time. Federico Valverde scored in stoppage time to guide his side to a thrilling 3-2 El Clasico victory. Real will next take on the winner of the second semi-final between Atletico Madrid and Athletic Bilbao in the final on Sunday. Here are further details.
Why does it matter?
Wednesday's result was Madrid's 5th successive win in El Clasico. This is the first time either team has shown such dominance in the last decade. In 2010, Barca have recorded a similar feat under Pep Guardiola. Real's victory in Super Cup marked their 100th El Clasico win since the two teams first faced each other in 1902. Barca have registered 96 victories against Real.
How did the match pan out?
Vinicius Junior broke the deadlock in the 25th minute to put Madrid ahead. Luuk de Jong scored the equalizer in the 41st minute. Karim Benzema struck in the 72nd minute to put Madrid up for the second time. Within ten minutes, Barca leveled again and this time Ansu Fati headed one home. Valverde scored the winner for Carlo Ancelotti's side in the 98th minute.
Real script a special feat
As per Opta, this is the second time Real Madrid have won five consecutive games against Barcelona in all competitions. They recorded the feat first time between 1962 to 1965, when they won seven straight El Clasicos.
Notable feats achieved by Benzema and Rodrygo
Rodrygo has become the only second player after Mesut Ozil in the 21st century to provide an assist against Barca in three consecutive games. Ozil did this twice - August 2012 and February 2013. Benzema has scored a goal and provided an assist against Barca in a single game for the first time in his career. Sergio Ramos achieved the same in May 2009.
Notable numbers for Barca
As per Opta, Barcelona attempted 20 shots against Real - most against them since April 2006. For the first time since his arrival at Camp Nou, Luuk de Jong has been on the scoreboard in three straight games in all competitions. He is also one of the five La Liga players in 2022 to score most goals - 3 (in all competitions).
Xavi sad and angry after defeat
This Barca can compete against anyone. We didn't get the result but it was step forward despite the loss," Barca boss Xavi Hernandez said. "I'm sad and angry because it's a Clasico defeat and we miss out on a trophy. But we dominated Madrid for large spells. We lack some experience, patience, responsibility. We made mistakes. We're close. We pushed Madrid back," he added.
Ancelotti disregards Xavi's claim
Ancelotti was not happy with Xavi's assessment. "I don't agree [with Xavi]. The game was even, they had more possession, and we used the counter," Ancelotti said at the post-match press conference. "In the first half we deserved to win, we conceded with some bad luck. The second half was more even, but I don't think Madrid dominated Barca or that Barca dominated Madrid."
