Barcelona 3-2 Real Madrid: Kounde clinches extraordinary Copa del Rey triumph

Jules Kounde’s strike deep into extra time saw Barcelona overcome Real Madrid 3-2 in a Copa del Rey final for the ages.

A Clasico of twists and turns was settled in Barca’s favour on Saturday, as Hansi Flick’s team kept their treble hopes alive.

Kounde was Barca’s hero at Estadio La Cartuja as he drilled a powerful, low effort into the net from outside the box to put them back ahead in the 116th minute.

Madrid had earlier come from behind in normal time thanks to two goals in the space of seven minutes.

Kylian Mbappe, on as a half-time substitute, cancelled out Pedri’s 28th-minute opener with a free-kick that clattered in off the left-hand upright, before Aurelien Tchouameni nodded home from Arda Guler’s corner.

Barca hit back late on when Antonio Rudiger and Thibaut Courtois were caught out by a ball over the top, from which Ferran Torres coolly restored parity.

Referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea, who Madrid requested to be removed from officiating the match after he broke down in a pre-match news conference due to what he labelled as unfair treatment by the club’s media channels, then pointed to the penalty spot when Raul Asencio lunged in on Raphinha in the final minute of stoppage time.

However, after a VAR check, he instead overturned his decision, deeming Raphinha to have dived as the contact was insufficient.

With Madrid having lost Vinicius Junior to injury, Torres went close to putting Barca back in front in the first half of extra time, but it was defender Kounde who stepped up to make the difference when he cut out Luka Modric’s sloppy pass.

Tempers boiled over as full-time approached, with Rudiger – who had been taken off by Carlo Ancelotti – dismissed for reacting wildly to a decision to award Barcelona a free-kick.

And from the resulting set-piece, Madrid’s hopes were ended by the whistle, and Los Blancos, who also had Lucas Vazquez sent off after full-time, must now attempt to rally themselves for another Clasico, this time in what could be a LaLiga title decider, on May 11.

THE COPA IS OURS! pic.twitter.com/WLcjstoG6y

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) April 26, 2025

Brilliant Barca get over the line

Kounde was the unlikely hero on the night, but Barca’s resolve after going 2-1 down was truly remarkable to watch.

This was the eighth Copa del Rey final between these two great rivals, and Barca have now levelled the score in terms of victories, with each side claiming four.

Barcelona have won the Copa del Rey for a record-extending 32nd time, and despite Madrid’s second-half resurgence, they were worthy victors in the end.

Their first-half performance was excellent, particularly in the absence of star striker Robert Lewandowski, who was ruled out due to injury. Torres, who finishes as the top scorer in this season’s Copa del Rey with six goals, filled in admirably up top, while Raphinha was a constant menace, and Pedri’s finish for the opener was sublime.

The Spaniard was teed up by Lamine Yamal, who has now contributed to goals in his last three Clasico appearances, scoring twice and providing one assist. He became the fourth Barca player to achieve that feat since the start of 2013-14, after Luis Suarez, Sergi Roberto and Raphinha.

Flick’s side have now lost only one of their last 28 matches across all competitions – that one loss being their 3-1 reverse at the hands of Borussia Dortmund on April 15. They have recorded the joint-most wins across all competitions of any team in Europe’s big five leagues in 2025, level with Paris Saint-Germain on 23.

It is also a third straight Clasico victory for Barca, who triumphed in the Supercopa de Espana final and LaLiga fixture earlier this season. The next Clasico could well be the top-flight title decider as well.

Barca are the team from Europe’s big five leagues who have scored the most goals this season (155) across all competitions, and though their defence could not hold Madrid’s star-studded attack back, the Blaugrana’s quality at the top end of the pitch told in the end.

The challenge now for Flick is to go on and win LaLiga and the Champions League, having become just the second Barca coach in history to win his first three Clasicos across all competitions, after Pep Guardiola (five between 2008 and 2010).

Is that goodbye to Don Carlo?

This feels now like the end for Ancelotti at Real Madrid, who did their very best to create a furore in the build-up to the match with their request for the referee to be taken off duty.

Madrid were far from happy with the officiating throughout the match, though after getting themselves ahead, they really only have themselves to blame for squandering the lead.

For those brief moments late in the second half of normal time, it did look like one of those famous Madrid comebacks. But it was not to be, and with a four-point deficit to overturn in LaLiga, it looks likely that Los Blancos end the season without any silverware.

Modric, so often the mercurial in Madrid’s midfield, made the sloppy turnover that led to Kounde’s winner. The Croatian was making his 37th Clasico appearance, equalling Fernando Hierro, Raul Gonzalez and Iker Casillas for the 10th-most games played in the fixture.

Mbappe, who started the game on the bench owing to an ankle injury, was introduced at half-time with Madrid staring down the barrel of defeat, and it is fair to say he changed the game. He won and then converted the free-kick for the equaliser and also thought he had won a penalty just moments after Kounde’s goal, only to be flagged offside.

The France star has been involved in eight goals in his last six finals (six goals and two assists – three for PSG and three for Madrid), scoring in each of his four such appearances for Los Blancos. He is the first LaLiga player to achieve that for any team, but it was not enough.

Heading into the game, Madrid led all teams in the Copa del Rey this season for shots (155), shots on target (61), expected goals (14.5 expected goals) and big chances created (30). But on the night, they were limited to just 0.82 xG, while Barca finished with a more impressive xG of 1.76.

Ancelotti has won 15 titles with Madrid in all. He is their most successful coach when it comes to trophies won, and he oversaw Los Blancos’ 2-1 Copa del Rey triumph over Barca in 2014, but it seems like the writing is on the wall for the Italian now.