Raphinha shines as Barcelona edge Real Madrid in Super Cup thriller

Raphinha

Barcelona coach Hansi Flick commended Raphinha's mindset after the forward struck twice to help his team beat Real Madrid 3-2 and retain the Spanish Super Cup on Sunday.

"His mentality is unbelievable, his dynamic affects the whole team. This is what Raphinha brings on the pitch, it's a lot of intensity and we need this." Flick said.

Hansi Flick

Barcelona won the Spanish Super Cup against Real Madrid last season on their way to claiming a domestic treble. Flick said he hoped the victory would help the La Liga leaders achieve a similar set of results this season too. "We are in a good mood, we have a lot of confidence now," the German coach added.

Barcelona players with the Spanish Super Cup in Jeddah on Sunday. Pic/AFP

It was Raphinha who drew first blood (36th min), before a frenetic end to the first-half saw Vinicius (45+2) equalise proceedings briefly before Robert Lewandowski (45+5) fired Flick's side into the lead, only for Gonzalo Garcia to draw the Los Blancos level less than a minute later. The battle was decided by Raphinha's rather fortuitous goal (73rd min) as he slipped while shooting only for the ball to deflect off Madrid defender Raúl Asencio and slip into the net.

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