On the morning of January 13th, Beijing time, the Spanish Super Cup reached its final match. Real Madrid, with a total value of 1.23 billion euros, faced off against Barcelona, valued at 1.02 billion euros.
In the semi-finals of the West Super Cup, Real Madrid defeated Mallorca 3-0, securing their fifth consecutive victory in all competitions. Notably, the "Galactic Battleship" had just won the Intercontinental Cup on December 19th and was looking forward to stepping over Barcelona to claim another title, aiming to lift two championship trophies within a month.
Barcelona, after an explosive start, experienced a prolonged slump. In the semi-finals of the West Super Cup, Athletic Bilbao had two goals ruled invalid, but Barcelona managed to advance to the final with a hard-fought 2-0 victory over Athletic Bilbao, also welcoming their first double victory in a long time.
It's worth noting that the two teams have already met this season in La Liga, with Flick leading his team to a 4-0 away victory over Real Madrid. After the opening whistle, both teams wasted no time in testing each other, quickly ramping up the pace of the game to its fastest, much to the delight of the fans.
In the second minute, Barcelona had a chance, with Yamar's shot heading straight for the corner, but Courtois made a heroic save. Just one minute later, facing Rafinha's powerful header from close range, Courtois once again made a perfect save.
In the blink of an eye, Real Madrid scored. In the fifth minute, Vinicius made a steal in the frontcourt, and Mbappe's dribbling was like Ronaldo reborn, as he cut diagonally and shot into the net.
Ten minutes later, Mbappe suddenly sat down on the field. The slow-motion replay showed that Mbappe may have twisted his ankle due to the soft turf while dribbling past an opponent, but he returned to the field after being wrapped with bandages.
Trailing behind, Barcelona launched wave after wave of attacks, leaving Real Madrid struggling to hold on. In the 22nd minute, Kounde initiated an attack from the back, with Lewandowski wasting no time to deliver a pass reminiscent of a volleyball setter, allowing Yamar to break through horizontally, enter the penalty area, and calmly score.
In the 31st minute, Camavinga, inside the penalty area, did not touch the ball at all but directly kicked Gavi down, with the referee initially making no call.
The Barcelona players were furious, but fortunately, after the ball went out of bounds, VAR intervened, and the referee awarded a penalty.
Lewandowski stepped up to take the penalty, his shot powerful enough to leave Courtois helpless, as Barcelona completed the score reversal.
In the 39th minute, Kounde displayed a "crescent moon scimitar," with Real Madrid's central defense wide open. Rafinha jumped fully and headed the ball into the corner.
In the last moments of the first half, Real Madrid earned a corner kick. Barcelona intercepted and immediately launched a quick counterattack. Rafinha dribbled past Valverde to provide an assist, and Balde scored.
At halftime, Barcelona, trailing 0-1, scored four consecutive goals to overtake Real Madrid.
Just as the second half began, Real Madrid could have clawed back a goal. Vinicius crossed the ball, and Rodrigo readied himself to shoot powerfully, but the ball hit the crossbar.
In the 48th minute, Barcelona launched a rapid attack, with Rafinha once again making Jovetic the backdrop, scoring his second goal.
In the 54th minute, Mbappe dribbled past Szczesny, who then stuck out a foot to bring down Mbappe. The referee reviewed the incident and showed Szczesny a red card, leaving Barcelona to play with only ten men. Real Madrid was awarded a well-positioned free-kick in the frontcourt.
Flick substituted Pena for Gavi, but before Pena could even touch the ball, they lost possession. Rodrigo's free-kick found the top corner.
Ultimately, in this Spanish national derby, Barcelona, with a total value of 1.02 billion euros, defeated Real Madrid 5-2 to win the championship.
In this match, Real Madrid, with a total value of 1.23 billion euros, also set an 82-year disgraceful record. After 82 years, Real Madrid conceded four goals in the first half of a national derby again. At the same time, Barcelona also scored four goals in the first half of a national derby after 82 years, creating a glorious record.
Furthermore, this is the first time in Real Madrid's history that they have conceded at least four goals in consecutive national derbies in all competitions (losing 0-4 in the league), setting a shameful team record.