Barcelona head into 11th january Sunday night’s Spanish Super Cup final full of confidence after barely breaking sweat in the semi-finals, where they tore Athletic Club apart with five first-half goals, Softfootball reported.
That dominant performance, which secured a convincing 5–0 win over Athletic Club in the Spanish Super Cup semi-final, handed Hansi Flick’s side the added advantage of extra recovery time ahead of El Clásico. Raphinha led the way with a brace, while Fermín López, Ferran Torres and Roony Bardghji were also on target as Barcelona extended their winning run to nine matches in all competitions.
The Catalan giants are now chasing a 16th Spanish Super Cup crown and have strong recent form against their fiercest rivals, winning four of the last five meetings. With momentum firmly on their side, Flick’s men will believe they can repeat last year’s final success over Real Madrid.
Real Madrid, in contrast, were made to work far harder in their semi-final, needing to grind out a tense 2–1 victory over Atlético Madrid to seal their place in the El Clásico Supercopa final, a result that underlined their ability to come through closely fought, high-pressure contests.
Federico Valverde’s stunning free kick and a Rodrygo strike proved decisive, although a late scare ensured Los Blancos had to dig deep.
Despite that, confidence remains high, with Real Madrid posting on their X handle:
Barcelona Dominate Athletic Club 5-0 in Spanish Super Cup Semi-Final,
underlining the magnitude of the showdown ahead.
Team News
Barcelona remain without Gavi, Marc-Andre ter Stegen and Andreas Christensen, but Lamine Yamal is expected to start after returning from a minor issue. Ronald Araujo is back in training but may not yet start.
Real Madrid could welcome back Kylian Mbappe from injury, while concerns remain over Rodrygo and Antonio Rudiger. Trent Alexander-Arnold, Eder Militao and Brahim Diaz are ruled out.
Possible Lineups
Barcelona: J Garcia; Kounde, Cubarsi, E Garcia, Balde; Pedri, De Jong; Yamal, Raphinha, Fermin; F Torres
Real Madrid: Courtois; Valverde, Asencio, Huijsen, Carreras; Camavinga, Tchouameni, Bellingham; Rodrygo, Mbappe, Vinicius
Softfootball Prediction
Barcelona 3-2 Real Madrid. An open, high-quality final is expected, but Barcelona’s sharpness and attacking depth could just tip the balance in a thrilling El Clásico showdown.
