A day of intense emotions was experienced by Barcelona fans this Wednesday, who, in the midst of lean times, received a double prize almost at once. The CSD returned the license to Dani Olmo and Pau Víctor on a precautionary basis and, minutes later, Flick's Barça registered for its first final, the Spanish Supercup, after defeating Athletic with more moments of brilliance than suffering.
If someone dared to imagine that the storm unleashed by the Olmo case could affect Flick's team, they were completely off track. At the Jawhara Stadium, the 'shining jewel' of Yida, the opposite began to happen. With the news still fresh of the favorable decision from the CSD, including Laporta's rude gesture, the Barcelona players took to the field to conquer the world and tame Athletic. Their attitude was impeccable after a few difficult days for the dressing room, which seemed to want to dedicate a victory to Olmo and Pau Víctor, smiling in the stands.
Gavi opened the scoring against Athletic and Lamine Yamal celebrated his return to the starting eleven with a great goal
Barça took less than five minutes to generate their first great chance of the night. They had been controlling the ball until then, bewildering the red and whites, and a great cross from Koundé on the right was headed high by Raphinha. The majority blue and red crowd, though half-empty and silent for much of the match, the football atmosphere in Arabia feeling somewhat gloomy, did lament it with a loud “Oh!”. The Brazilian, a key figure in the build-up with his straightforward attack, seemed eager to also grab the spotlight on the field, and with a free-kick attempt, tried unsuccessfully to surprise an attentive Unai Simón.
It seemed that Athletic missed Nico Williams, whom Valverde chose to reserve at the start. At Barça, Lamine Yamal broke into the starting lineup, as did Szczesny due to a lack of discipline - a delay - by Iñaki Peña. Flick is uncompromising. The Polish goalkeeper certainly had a quiet first half, but when he had to intervene, he did so with security and accuracy, always attentive to Athletic's long balls, several of which he cleared with his head.
Barça's dominance didn't take long to reflect on the scoreboard. The umpteenth steal by the azulgrana resulted in a through pass that Balde turned into a great assist for Gavi, who placed the ball in the net with his left foot. The youth academy player is gradually regaining form and appears increasingly confident, also getting involved in all the events, which is the best sign of his physical and mental state.
An error by Íñigo Martínez led to a good opportunity for Iñaki Williams, who made the wrong decision. Raphinha also failed to be precise against Unai Simón when the second from Barça was threatening to come out of the oven. This mistake seemed to cause a small change in the scenario of the semifinal. Athletic started to be more patient with the ball and began to equalize possession, chewing over the plays more, while Barça lacked the cunning to regain possession. As a result of this change in trend, Szczesny began to appear more in the Arab night. First, feline against a venomous cross from Yuri. And, before the break, he pulled off a great save from Iñaki Williams. An equalizer at that moment would have been a very hard blow for Flick's men.
The Flick team successfully weathered the storm surrounding the Olmo case and will fight for their first title
The break did wonders for Barça, who regained some composure and repeated the great start to the match. Once again, the field tilted towards Unai Simón's goal. Despite Lewandowski continuing to prolong his obvious slump and being the least sharp of all the blaugranas. Not so Raphinha, who created a great chance but erred in the last moment with his shot, very clear-cut. But, as had happened in the first half, the second Barça goal was just a matter of time. Barely a few minutes. The action originated from a great recovery in the opposite half by Íñigo Martínez, the ball ended up with Gavi, who connected with Lamine Yamal. The Rocafonda native, who had been less involved until then, decided to leave his mark. He controlled the ball by turning his body and scored the second with his usual composure.
Flick's team made a mistake after the goal, slowing down again and allowing Athletic to grow. Szczesny took center stage and prevented a nerve-wracking final few minutes. The Lions couldn't shorten the distance, as their joy was frustrated twice by offside goals from De Marcos and Iñaki Williams, both 'made in' Flick, leaving them without a final. That honor, well-deserved, fell to a Barça that finally allows itself to half-smile.
Technical sheet
0 - Athletic Club: Unai Simón; Lekue (De Marcos, min.62), Vivián, Paredes, Yuri; Jauregizar, Prados (Nico Williams, min.62); Iñaki Williams, Unai Gómez (Djaló, min.80), Berenguer (Nico Serrano, min.72); and Guruzeta (Mikel Vesga, min.62).
2 - Barcelona: Szczesny; Koundé, Cubarsí, Íñigo Martínez, Balde (Gerard Martín, m.82); Casadó (Eric García, m.82), Pedri, Gavi (De Jong, m.72); Lamine Yamal (Fermín, m.62), Raphinha; and Lewandowski (Ferran Torres, m.72).
Goals: 0-1: Gavi, 17th minute. 0-2: Yamal, 52nd minute.
Referee: Ortiz Arias (Madrid committee). Showed a yellow card to Berenguer (min.56) and Koundé (min.76).
Incidents: First semifinal of the Spanish Supercup soccer tournament held at King Abdullah Stadium in Jeddah.
