Real Madrid and Barça arrive with doubts, but one eventually becomes champion in Saudi Arabia and the other enters a crisis
Win, park doubts and incidentally increase the record with another Spanish Super Cup. That is the triple goal that Madrid and Barcelona will have in Riyadh. The two giants of Spanish football are measured in a new planetary classic that will be key for both of them. It is for the culés, who want to resume the path of titles as soon as possible and gain confidence in the new project, and it is also for the whites, who want to prove to themselves that Carlo Ancelotti’s ship has not expired and the doubts only minor accidents have happened from the last meetings. Whoever wins wins a title and whoever loses increases the football pit shown in the semifinals. Big door or infirmary.
Saudi Arabia puts on its best clothes for a celebration that has been overdue for three years. Never before have Real Madrid and Barcelona measured their strength in the grand final since the venue and format were changed in 2020 and the King Fahd International Stadium awaits a show as expected. It will be a party, yes, where both clubs arrive with just enough. The two will have to improve the image shown against Valencia and Betis respectively to achieve a title that the Catalans have won thirteen times, a figure that the whites could match against their eternal rival in an unbeatable context.
To achieve this, Madrid will have to make a clean sheet of the game they played in the semi-final against Valencia. Ancelotti’s men were a team short of ideas in offensive tasks and a worrying dependency on Karim Benzema, the footballer through whom all the balls went. The Frenchman was an island during many moments of the clash, which is what a team hoping Vinicius or Rodrygo will once again be the decisive players who let the whites raise their orejona last year will want to avoid. Together with them, an improvement is expected in the defensive field, where the axis of the rear has lost predominance after its spectacular start to the course and continues the test bench on the sides.
Against Barcelona, Ancelotti bets on the old guard. The Italian coach has no Tchouaméni and Alaba, who did not travel to Saudi Arabia, nor Lucas Vázquez, who will be out for a month and a half after spraining his ankle against Valencia. Carvajal will take his place in an eleven in which Modric will be the big novelty after halftime in the semi-finals and claim his place in midfield along with Kroos, forming a tireless couple who had so much weight in last year’s championship team. There are more doubts at the tip of the spear. Benzema and Vinicius are tied, while third place is contested between Asensio, Rodrygo or even Valverde, who could step up his position to add another man to the dispute in the center of the field, with Ceballos having lots of options after the Camavinga’s disappointing first-half performance against Valencia.
Opposite is a Barcelona that is still finding itself. Xavi’s guys are clear about their style, they know it’s worked countless times, but in recent games that model hasn’t proved as reliable as expected. “We haven’t been able to mature the game. It’s been happening to us since the World Cup break,” the man from Egar told Betis after the semi-final. Once again, his team showed signs of being unable to cope with the physical demands that put pressure on the forefront and ended up providing the same facilities in defense as in previous matches. Barça are not reaching the classic at a great time, but they know that this could change with the achievement of the first title of the Xavi era, a turning point that could be decisive for the new project.
Xavi will be able to count on all his football players for this, as happened against Betis. The big doubt in the alignment of the culés will be in the drawing. Against Atlético, in a great match, Xavi chose to use Pedri and sacrifice one of the two wingers to ensure possession and more control of the game. That draw could be repeated against a Real Madrid that penalizes turnover like few others. It would be the main novelty in an eleven in which Araujo and Koundé will repeat at the back, Busquets will return after the break against the Verdiblancos and Dembélé and Lewandowski will be in charge of goal.
Source: La Verdad
I am Shawn Partain, a journalist and content creator working for the Today Times Live. I specialize in sports journalism, writing articles that cover major sporting events and news stories. With a passion for storytelling and an eye for detail, I strive to be accurate and insightful in my work.
