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Lionel Messi was sent off after Barcelona were beaten 3-2 by Athletic Bilbao after extra time in the Spanish Super Cup final in Seville on Sunday.
Two goals from Antoine Griezmann had twice given Barça the advantage at La Cartuja. The Frenchman opened the scoring with a smart finish from inside the box and restored Barca’s advantage in the 77th minute after Oscar’s equalizer from Marcos just before the break.
Barca were minutes away from winning their first trophy under coach Ronald Koeman when Asier Villalibre brought home a 90th free-kick to make it 2-2 and draw in another 30 minutes.
Inaki Williams’ superb strike in the 94th minute didom the game, with Messi seeing red for the very first time as a Barca player for hitting Villalibre in the last minute as frustration boiled down.
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Positive
Griezmann’s goals should give him confidence after a difficult season, although it will hurt that they didn’t score anything in the end. Other than that, young defender Ronald Araujo was once again impressive.
Negative
The worst part about missing a first piece of silver this season – and their first since 2018-19 under Ernesto Valverde – is that Barca have spent 240 minutes for fun. After extra time against Real Sociedad in midweek, the last thing they needed was extra time against Athletic again in an already crowded season, especially since it didn’t end with the first Koeman era trophy.
One has to wonder how Messi, doubtful until the last minute with an injury, will particularly recover from the effort.
Elsewhere, defending is a problem. There are too many concentration gaps in defense, especially from Jordi Alba and Clément Lenglet. A nine-game unbeaten streak helped Barca slowly reverse their season, but it was a wake-up call: they still have a long way to go.
Manager score out of 10
5 – Koeman took Ousmane Dembele and Pedri off just before Villalibre’s last minute leveler and Barca never looked like the same team again. Athletic were deserving winners, with new coach Marcelino winning the tactical battle.
Player ratings (1 to 10; 10 = best. Players introduced after 70 minutes do not receive any marks)
GK Marc-André ter Stegen, 6 – Could do little on one of the goals.
DF Sergino Dest, 6 – Lasted only until half time after failing to fully recover from a thigh injury.
DF Ronald Araujo, 7 years old – Good in the air and quick on the court, he handled Williams’ threat and speed well throughout.
DF Clement Lenglet, 5 years old – Walked a tightrope from the moment he was booked for fouling Williams in the first half. His positioning was bad for Villalibre’s goal.
DF Jordi Alba, 5 years old – Helped establish Barca’s two goals but also poorly defended Athletic’s two goals. Leave De Marcos behind for the first and avoid the free kick that led to the second.
MF Sergio Busquets, 6 years old – OKAY. Was again well positioned and stifled some athletic attacks.
MF Frenkie de Jong, 7 years old – Attempted to advance with the ball but lacked support in the final third.
MF Pedri, 6 years old – Athletic has taken much better care of him this time around after being torn apart by him in San Mames just 10 days ago.
FW Ousmane Dembele, 6 years old – Got into a few promising positions and was always a threat with his acceleration, but lacked a final product.
FW Antoine Griezmann, 8 years old – Took his goals well and worked hard, especially in defense.
FW Lionel Messi, 5 years old – I rushed from an injury to start the match but didn’t look in good shape. His frustration, with himself and his team’s performance, spilled over late as he picked up a rare red card.
Substitutes
DF Oscar Mingueza, 6 years old – Replaced Dest at the break but had a tough time against the impressive Iker Muniain, who was all over the place.
MF Miralem Pjanic, N / R – He had more minutes than he bargained for, coming to see the game after Griezmann’s goal and then getting 30 more.
FW Martin Braithwaite, N / R – Wasn’t that the threat Barca needed when they continued the game.
MF Riqui Puig, N / R – Came into overtime and demanded the ball but didn’t produce anything remarkable this time after his heroic midweek penalties.
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