Real Madrid won the 2017 Spanish Super Cup second leg 2-0 against FC Barcelona. With an aggregate score of 5-1, Real Madrid took hold of the game and never looked back.
Zinedine Zidane did typical Zidane things, and decided to make some rotations for the second leg. Isco, Bale, and Casemiro were all put on the bench for this match. Going with youth and energy, Zidane decided to play Asensio and Vazquez alongside Benzema in the attack.
And it paid off quickly.
Marco Asensio. What. A. Goal. https://t.co/kqIR8SfOJs
— Xav Salazar (@XavsFutbol) August 16, 2017
Marco Asensio continues to score wondergoals, and he managed to produce this one early into the match, dashing any hopes of a Barcelona comeback quickly.
Asensio and Vazquez terrorized the Barcelona defense, who were largely helpless in dealing with the myriad offensive threats that Madrid had going forward. Madrid kept total control over the midfield, and were unrelenting in their harassment of Barcelona.
Barcelona, for their part, were really subpar. This is a far cry from the Barcelona that tore Madrid up in the Bernabéu in April. Lionel Messi was tasked with doing far too much both in the midfield and attack. And while Luis Suarez looked energetic until late in the match when he began clutching his knee, he ultimately failed to connect in any meaningful way with his teammates.
Real Madrid had bright spots all across the pitch. If Real Madrid can maintain this level of balance between offense and defense all season, they will be a truly terrifying team to deal with. Raphael Varane in particular did an amazing job keeping Messi et al in check.
Mateo Kovacic has also demonstrated that he can deputize for Casemiro when need be. The midfield combinations between Kovacic, Kroos, and Modric were top notch. Kovacic in particular put his dribbling prowess on display, running around defenders with ease.
Benzema played a huge role in this match, and showed that he can pick up the slack when Ronaldo is not on the pitch. His goal was incredibly impressive, from the first touch to the finish. It’s great to see Benzema in fine from to start the season.
Another shout out to Keylor Navas, who made back-to-back saves late into the game as Barca was attempting to get some pride back from this affair.
Overall, Real Madrid could not have asked for a better way to kick off their season. Winning a pre-season trophy and humiliating their biggest rival could give Real Madrid the momentum they need to mount a title defense. And Barcelona, Madrid’s closest rival for the title, find themselves in the middle of a crisis. Not a great way to start of their season.
Next: Can Isco ascend to the top of world football?