Raphinha scored a double when Barcelona defeated Real Madrid 3-2 in a spectacular El Clasico, thereby winning the Spanish Super Cup (Supercopa de Espana) in Saudi Arabia.
The Brazilian star scored the decisive goal in the 73rd minute, helping Barca celebrate their third consecutive victory in the final against Real Madrid under Hansi Flick, after their successes in the Super Cup and Copa del Rey last season.
When the match entered the last 20 minutes, the score was still tight after a dramatic first half, where up to 3 goals were scored in injury time, followed by Raphinha's opening goal in the 36th minute.
Vinicius Junior quickly equalized, before Robert Lewandowski brought Blaugrana to re-establish their advantage. However, Gonzalo Garcia kip thoi equalized the score right before the first half ended.
In the second half, Real Madrid put Kylian Mbappe on the field after recovering from a knee injury. However, Raphinha was the one who decided the fate of the match. In the final minutes, Alvaro Carreras and Raul Asencio missed opportunities one after another, making Real unable to bring the match into a penalty shootout, in the context that Barcelona had to play with one less player after Frenkie de Jong received a red card.
Barcelona's sweet response
Now, Barcelona can completely see the defeat to Real Madrid in La Liga in October last year as a temporary slip. After winning all 4 El Clasico matches last year, at the beginning of this season, signs appeared that the balance of power could change direction. Especially after the 2-1 victory of the team led by Xabi Alonso right at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Therefore, the Blaugrana players entered the match with the determination to reaffirm their position against their number one rival. And that feeling became even clearer after 90 minutes in Jeddah.
For most of the time, Barca controlled the match convincingly, maintaining nearly 70% of possession time until the final whistle sounded. They deserved to have the opening goal thanks to Raphinha's goal, while Real Madrid's two equalizers bore more the appearance of "hitter blows" than the consequence of the overwhelming game.
Of course, that does not mean Real Madrid lacks opportunities. The two teams have 8 shots on target, but the xG index (expected goal) clearly reflects the quality of opportunities: Barca achieved 2.6 - superior to Real Madrid's 1.38.
This is Barcelona's fourth title under Flick. The German strategist once emphasized that the Spanish Super Cup last season was the launching pad for the La Liga and Copa del Rey doubles. With a gap of 4 points at the top of the table, the prospect of adding more titles is very feasible. However, what Barcelona players are most eager for is still the UEFA Champions League trophy.
Raphinha is the nemesis of Real Madrid
Raphinha is truly the nemesis of Real Madrid. Looking back, perhaps it is no coincidence that Barca lost in El Clasico in October, when the former Leeds United striker was absent due to injury.
In this match, Real Madrid did not have the same luck. Raphinha returned from the end of November and is gradually finding his peak version again. He sent a warning signal with a double in the victory over Athletic Bilbao in the semi-finals, and almost opened the score right in the first half in Jeddah, when his shot went wide of the post after Lamine Yamal's clean-up pass.
Possessing a solid physical foundation and unremitting movements, the next opportunity came very quickly. And Raphinha perfectly took advantage of it to break the deadlock in the last minutes of the first half. The winning goal was somewhat luckier when the ball touched the opponent's defender and changed direction. However, if anyone deserves that decisive moment, it is Raphinha.
His recent form against Real Madrid is a telling number: 7 goals and 3 assists in the last 6 encounters. Notably, there are up to 3 matches in which are finals - two in the Spanish Super Cup and one in the Copa del Rey.
More broadly, Raphinha has scored 11 goals after 19 matches this season. If the title just won becomes a launching pad for a brilliant Barca season, the prerequisite is to keep Raphinha always energetic.
