Hegemony or Redemption in a Classic with a Special Colour

Barcelona and Real Madrid have faced each other 37 times in the Copa del Rey, with a slightly favourable balance for the Catalans, which tilts minimally towards the Whites in the seven previous finals where they have met. The eighth, to be held this Saturday at Seville's Estadio de La Cartuja, however, takes on a special colour. Not precisely due to the charm and scent of orange blossom that imbue the famous love declaration by Los del Río to the city hosting La Giralda, but because of the pivotal nature of a match that could mark a before and after for two teams arriving at the event with practically opposite dynamics and moods.

On one side of the ring is Hansi Flick's dazzling Barcelona, a formidable machine finely tuned, leading La Liga with a four-point advantage with five matches to go, stepping into the Champions League semi-finals, and aiming to crown themselves for the thirty-second time in the Copa del Rey. On the other side appears Carlo Ancelotti's melancholic Real Madrid, ousted by Arsenal in the quarter-finals of the continent's top competition, on the ropes in the regular championship, and clinging to the knockout tournament to salvage a campaign that threatens to sweep away the most decorated coach in their history.

The Catalans, dreaming of writing another brilliant chapter in a season where they have already delivered two resounding thrashings to their hated enemy in as many classics, have brought the Spanish Super Cup to their trophy cabinet and have lost only one match in the last four months, are favourites for a clash that could consolidate the emerging Catalan hegemony or decree the redemption of the Whites.

The 0-4 with which they stormed the Santiago Bernabéu in the eleventh La Liga matchday and the 2-5 with which they triumphed in the Super Cup final held in Saudi Arabia grant moral superiority to a Barcelona arriving in Seville at cruising speed. Since hitting rock bottom with two league setbacks in December against Leganés and Atlético de Madrid, the Catalan team has been practically unassailable. They have only conceded four draws and one defeat in the twenty-seven matches played in a 2025 that has placed them on the brink of a treble.

With such intimidating credentials and the desire to conquer a trophy that the king of Cups has not touched since 2021, Barcelona presents themselves for a challenge for which Flick cannot count on Balde or Lewandowski. The left femoral biceps injury suffered by the full-back on April 12 in Butarque and the left thigh issue affecting the forward following last weekend's match against Celta will prevent both from participating in a clash where other key components of the machinery like Koundé, Cubarsí, De Jong, or Raphinha arrive with fresh legs after the extensive rotation Flick executed in the comfortable victory achieved on Tuesday against Mallorca.

With one less day of rest and far more urgency, Real Madrid approaches a skirmish where Ancelotti's credit is largely at stake. Two years ago, the Copa del Rey won against Osasuna at La Cartuja was the lifeline for the coach in a season where his team lost La Liga to Xavi Hernández's Barcelona, also fell in the Spanish Super Cup to the Catalans, and was thrashed by Manchester City in the Champions League semi-finals. That trophy, which reconciled the Whites with the Cup nine years later, along with previous successes, led Florentino Pérez to overlook the failures of that campaign and give Carletto another chance. However, the current situation is more precarious. Ancelotti's numbers have worsened, the dressing room doesn't seem to support him as before, and there's a scent of the end of an era.

To turn this scenario around, the man with the eyebrow has no choice but to win the Copa final and thereby perhaps lay the first stone of a league comeback that would require a full fifteen points in the remaining five matches, including an assault on Montjuic on May 11, and wait for Barcelona to falter, perhaps shaken by a potential debacle in Seville. Reggiolo's man will bet all his chips on that card, recovering Mbappé for a duel where he contemplates sacrificing a forward to reinforce the midfield in search of the balance that was lacking in the two previous classics.

Barcelona: Szczesny, Koundé, Cubarsí, Iñigo Martínez, Gerard Martín, Pedri, De Jong, Lamine Yamal, Dani Olmo, Raphinha, and Ferran Torres.

Real Madrid: Courtois, Valverde, Asencio, Rüdiger, Mendy, Tchouaméni, Modric, Ceballos, Bellingham, Mbappé, and Vinicius.

Referee: De Burgos Bengoetxea (Basque Committee).

Time: 22:00 h.

Stadium: La Cartuja.

TV: La 1 / Movistar Plus+.