Rafinha scored twice as Barcelona defeated Real Madrid 3-2 in a frenetic Clasico on Sunday to win the Supercopa de España in Saudi Arabia.
The Brazilian scored the winning goal in the 73rd minute as Barça celebrated their third successive final victory over Hansi Flick’s Madrid, following last season’s Supercopa and Copa del Rey successes.
After a chaotic first half in which Rafinha scored the opening goal in the 36th minute and scored three goals in stoppage time, the tie remained in doubt heading into the final 20 minutes.
First Vinicius Junior equalized, then Robert Lewandowski pushed Barça back and there was still time for Gonzalo García to restore parity before half-time.
Madrid brought on Kylian Mbappe in the second half after his return from a knee injury, but it was Rafinha who was the hero, with Madrid’s Alvaro Carreras and Raul Asensio converting a big late chance to take the game to penalties after Frenkie de Jong was sent off. — Sam Marsden
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Barça avenge October’s Clasico and win their first trophy of the season
Barça can now look back on October’s La Liga defeat against Madrid as a mere moment. After winning all four Clasicos last year, there were slight hints that the tide could turn earlier this season after Xabi Alonso’s side won 2-1 at the Santiago Bernabéu.
Barça’s players were therefore desperate to reaffirm their superiority over their arch-rivals, and they will feel they have done so in Jeddah on Sunday.
For the majority of the match, they had complete control of the proceedings, having almost 70% possession by full-time. Madrid’s two equalizing goals felt like a terrible punch when Rafinha scored, but they deserved the lead.
However, that doesn’t mean Madrid couldn’t create chances on the counter. Both teams finished with eight shots on target, but the total xG gave a better indication of who created the best first goals, with Barça’s 2.6 being significantly more than Madrid’s 1.38.
Barça have now won four trophies under Flick. The German coach last week spoke about last season’s Supercopa, which was the basis for his side’s success in La Liga and the Copa del Rey. With a four-point lead at the top of the league, another silver medal seems likely, but it is the UEFA Champions League that this group of players are keen to get their hands on. –Marsden
Vini Jr. steps up to end 16-game scoreless streak
Mbappe was good enough to be on the bench and was eventually brought on in the 76th minute, but Madrid’s other star, Vinicius Junior, was under more pressure than ever before.
However, Vinicius has not scored in 16 games, an unprecedented drought. It wasn’t just that he wasn’t scoring goals. His lack of impact even earned him whistles from the Bernabeu crowd. His performance in the semi-final in Jeddah was notable only for a touchline spat with Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone.
But none of that mattered when Vinicius picked up the ball late in the first half, two minutes into stoppage time. In a one-on-one with Jules Kounde wide on the left, Vinicius was suddenly at his unplayable best. He teased Kounde with the ball, then smoothly rocked the right-back, danced into the box and finished past Joao Garcia. His celebration, as he ran to kick the corner flag, was an explosive release of emotion.
Vinicius was desperate for this goal and so were Real Madrid. As the second half began, he looked like a different player than we’ve seen in recent weeks, free from a lot of stress and baggage. Twice he came close to scoring again, but Kunde could not cope. It wasn’t until the end of the second half, perhaps because he was tired, that the Brazilian international stopped posing a threat, and he was replaced by Arda Guler just before the end.
Vinicius’ goal was meaningless in the end. Madrid lost the match. But if there’s one positive they can take away from this final, and this tournament, it’s that one of the best players in the world rediscovered the form that day to make him a Ballon d’Or candidate. Now we wait to see if it’s just a mirage or something more concrete. — Alex Kirkland
Madrid’s safety-first system is mostly working
Madrid started the game with a very conservative, defensive-minded system. While Barcelona were moving forward with the ball, Madrid were stuck in a deep five-back block, with Federico Valverde dropping to right-back, Aurélien Choameni joining Dean Huyssen and Raul Asensio in the middle, and Carreras on the left.
Logically, Barça had the upper hand. They had 76% of possession in the first half compared to Madrid’s 24%. There were good reasons for Madrid’s approach. Lacking key defenders like Eder Militao and Antonio Rudiger, and having struggled to convince teams in recent months, they could be forgiven for taking a risk-averse and cautious approach.
Madrid suffered several heavy losses against Barça last season, including a 5-2 defeat in the Supercopa final. Given the precarious situation Alonso finds himself in this time around, he could not afford to achieve a similar scoreline this time around, especially given the humiliation he suffered in this final and the precarious situation that could cost him his job.
In that sense, the night was a success. Madrid avoided such a defeat. There were five goals, but they were split between the teams with some credit. They competed, fought, and lost by one point.
But it was not the ‘rock’n’roll’ style promised from Alonso’s team, nor was it an approach that Madrid could hope to replicate often without being exposed to criticism for a style of play unbecoming of a big team.
On Sunday night, it worked, up to a point. Madrid had their chances until the end, but took advantage of two great chances to equalize in stoppage time. But it’s not a template for the future. — Kirkland
Rafinha continues his scoring streak
Rafinha will definitely improve against Madrid. In hindsight, it is probably no coincidence that Barça lost Flick’s first Clasico in October, when the former Leeds United forward was sidelined with injury.
Madrid had no such luck here. Rafinha returned to action at the end of November and has been gradually returning to his best form ever since. He alerted Madrid with a brace in the semi-final against Athletic Club, and should have given Madrid the lead in the first half with a superb pass from Lamine Yamal and a shot wide of the target in Jeddah.
With their tireless running, it didn’t take long for them to get another chance, and they took the lead late in the first half. The winner was a bit more fortunate, scoring a deflection to fool Thibaut Courtois, but if there was a winner, it was Rafinha.
His recent performance against Madrid has been amazing. This brings him to seven goals and three assists in the past six games. Three of these matches are finals, two in the Supercopa and one in the Copa del Rey.
On the other hand, he has scored 11 goals in 19 games this season. If this latest trophy is to be Barça’s springboard to further success this season, one would imagine they will need to keep Rafinha healthy. It’s not just the goals and assists he contributes, but the energy and intensity he brings to defense and attack. –Marsden
Barça’s miracle of defense and clean sheets ends
Barcelona’s five-game clean sheet streak in all competitions was their longest since 2020, but it always looked a bit deceptive, and that was proven against Madrid.
Vinicius’ stunning equalizer deserves praise, but it is unlikely to change the way first-team analysts analyze defenses in advance. Questions have to be asked about Kounde’s role in the goal when the Brazilian jumped over him. The Frenchman has had below-average performances all season, but he may have had some help from Pau Kvarsi this time around. The young centre-back watched as a spectator as Vinicius fired with his right foot.
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The defense for the second goal was definitely worse. Kvarsi again did not respond well to a corner kick, and Pedri, who had just provided a great assist for Lewandowski’s goal, was also too loose on Garcia. Barça were complaining about the extra stoppage time, but they should have taken some advice from Roy Keane and done their job rather than worrying about it.
That means Flick still has some work to do at the back. It remains to be seen whether the arrival of attacking full-back Joao Cancelo will help, but for the neutrals it means games like the recent Clasico defeats and last season’s Champions League semi-final loss to Inter are always on the horizon. –Marsden
What does it mean for Xabi Alonso?
So what does this mean for the Real Madrid manager?
Alonso has faced match points several times in the past, but has saved them all. Just when the pressure on Alonso looked unbearable after losses to Celta Vigo and Manchester City before Christmas, Madrid won three games in one week and ensured that Alonso would continue to play during the Christmas break. Madrid, who returned in 2026, beat Real Betis 5-1 and narrowly defeated Atletico Madrid 2-1 in the Supercopa semi-finals on Thursday. And this time, we ended up losing 3-2 to a good team.
In a way, it all brings Alonso back to where he started. Doubts about him still remain among club executives. Because nothing that has happened since then is important enough to change their minds. But nothing bad has happened to force a change. Madrid have won without playing particularly well – or here, losing despite playing well.
That is, unless something unexpected happens – as always happens at Real Madrid – the most likely scenario is that Alonso stays in the job and continues to be under pressure. To change that, Madrid need to not only win games, but also play with a convincing shape and style that feels like the team’s future, rather than reacting to the situation.
Alonso said after the match: “We have to move on as soon as possible.” “This is not the most important tournament we play. We have to move forward.” — Kirkland
