KEY POINTS
- Federico Valverde scored the winner for Real Madrid
- Luuk de Jong and Ansu Fati netted the two goals for Barca
- Real Madrid will play the Supercopa final Sunday
Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti disagreed with Xavi Hernandez, who claimed FC Barcelona dominated Real Madrid in their 3-2 loss in the Spanish Supercopa semifinal in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday.
Los Blancos midfielder Federico Valverde netted the winner in the 98th minute for Madrid in their 100th Clasico match after Barcelona duo Luuk de Jong and Ansu Fati had earlier canceled out goals from Vinicius Junior and Karim Benzema.
"I am sad and angry because the game was there for the taking for us. We played with a complex in the first 20 minutes, but we got over that. It was a day to be brave. This Barca side can compete against anyone. We didn't get the result we wanted, but it was still a step forward," Xavi said in his post-match conference.
Wednesday's match against Real Madrid also saw Pedri and Ansu return from long-term injuries and the latest signing, Ferran Torres, making his Barcelona debut.
"The feelings are contradictory because we could almost touch the win. I'm sad because it's a Clasico defeat and we miss out on a trophy, but we dominated Madrid for large spells. We lack some experience, patience, responsibility. We made mistakes. We could have stopped [Madrid's] counters and been more responsible with the ball. But we're close," added Xavi in the same news conference.
The Catalans recorded a total of 20 shots in comparison to Real Madrid's 14 at the King Fahd Stadium and registered 53% of the possession.
Real Madrid and Barcelona played the Supercopa semi-final in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday Photo: AFP / LLUIS GENE
Disagreeing with Xavi's assessment of the game, Real Madrid boss Ancelotti said, "I don't agree [with Xavi], the game was even, they had more possession and we used the counter. In the first half, we deserved to win, we conceded with some bad luck. The second half was more even but I don't think Madrid dominated Barca or that Barca dominated Madrid."
While Los Blancos remain in Saudi Arabia to prepare for Sunday's final, Barcelona will have a free weekend. Xavi-managed Barca are next in action against Athletic in the Copa del Rey next Wednesday.
"We were aware that it was going to be a very close encounter, and it turned out that way. We played well, particularly in the first half. In the second half, we played very well on the counter-attack and in the end, tiredness kicked in. It was an entertaining match and I think we put on a good show and gave a good account for Spanish football," Ancelotti said after his side's 3-2 win.
Real Madrid are five points clear at the top of the 2021-22 La Liga table but have played a game more. With 32 points in 20 games, Barcelona are placed sixth.
