Jules Kounde scored a last-gasp purpose in further time to seal Barcelona’s thrilling 3-2 victory over Real Madrid in a fiercely contested Copa del Rey ultimate at Seville’s La Cartuja stadium on Saturday.
Barca gained a record-extending thirty second Spanish Cup title because of a surprising strike from the French defender, who slotted a low drive into the underside nook from 25 yards within the 116th minute.
The match ended on a bitter observe for Real Madrid as Antonio Rudiger and Lucas Vazquez, each on the bench after being substituted earlier, acquired crimson playing cards for dissent from the sidelines, with Jude Bellingham additionally being flashed a crimson after the ultimate whistle for unsportsmanlike conduct.
Pedri put Barca forward within the twenty eighth minute with an excellent curling strike into the highest nook from outdoors the field in a primary half they dominated.
However, Real took management within the second half as Kylian Mbappe, who was absent from the beginning XI as he has but to regain full health from an ankle damage, got here off the bench to attain the equalizer from a free kick within the seventieth minute.
Aurelien Tchouameni gave Real Madrid the lead seven minutes later with a towering header from a nook earlier than Ferran Torres discovered the equalizer in a counterattack within the 84th minute that took the sport to further time.
Just when it appeared just like the title must be settled in a penalty shootout, Kounde lastly scored the winner that earned Barca a title that gave German supervisor Hansi Flick his first main title with Barca, crowning an excellent season through which they’re additionally bidding for the La Liga and Champions League titles whereas Real are actually left solely with La Liga as they bid to keep away from a trophy-less marketing campaign.
“It was a good time to give the fans something to cheer about. Let’s enjoy it, but don’t overdo it because the Champions League semi-finals are coming up in a few days,” participant of the match Ferran Torres advised TVE.
“Happy and tired. Without a doubt, it was the most physically demanding game I’ve played in my life. But we’re a great team who never gives up,” he stated.
“It tastes better that way, especially when it’s Real Madrid in front of us,” he added.
It was a nail-biting, ill-tempered encounter fueled by Friday’s turmoil ignited after Real Madrid determined to boycott pre-match actions in protest towards the Spanish FA’s refereeing.
Final official Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea, who had given an emotional pre-match press convention Friday, was confronted with a sequence of difficult selections, together with an added-time penalty for Barcelona that was ultimately overturned following a prolonged VAR evaluate.
Torres had a header hit the publish simply earlier than halftime, marking a one-sided first half through which Real Madrid, missing in kind, had been lucky to solely be trailing by a single purpose.
In an try and swing the momentum, Ancelotti introduced on Mbappe from the bench to exchange the ineffectual Rodrygo. The French ahead modified the dynamic of the sport, creating quite a few issues for Barcelona along with his high-paced mixtures with Vinicius Jr.
Despite two clear possibilities from Vinicius Jr. being denied by gorgeous saves from Wojciech Szczesny, Mbappe managed to search out the again of the web within the 69th minute with a low strike from a free kick.
Just as Barcelona gave the impression to be on the backfoot and Real Madrid had been gaining management, Torres equalized within the 83rd minute. This set the stage for a dramatic conclusion, with Barcelona securing the winner to the euphoria of their followers.
Source: www.dailysabah.com