They'll never have it: Barça-Madrid's hot takes on the Copa del Rey final

BarcelonaBarça's comeback against Real Madrid (3-2) is full of ecstasy to dream of the treble. Here are the hot notes from the Cup final.

They will never have it. Let them spend all the millions they want, they'll never have a youth system like Barça's. Football is about skin. Emotion. Passion. Feeling the colors, loving a crest, and giving it your all for the thousands and thousands of fans who have dug deep into their pockets to come and cheer you on in a final. Few rivalries exist in the world as charismatic as Barça-Madrid, and here, the talent gap between the home team's players was abysmal. Lucas, Asencio, and Fran are light years ahead of Lamine Yamal, Cubarsí—who had a tremendous game—Olmo, Fermín, and company... La Fábrica will never be La Masia.

Dirty a finalThey were scared shitless and shifted the pressure onto the referees with a ridiculous maneuver. They blew up the run-up to a final, canceling all RFEF meetings and threatening not to show up... All to instil in the referees' good graces. The worst part is that it went well for them: a yellow card for Rüdiger's tackle on Olmo, forgiven; Asencio's foul on Olmo, forgiven; a possible penalty for Valverde's handball, not even reviewed; Ceballos' slap in the face of Lamine Yamal, nothing; a possible penalty for Ceballos on Cubarsí and another on Ferran, not even a glance... only to top it all off with a disallowed penalty on Raphinha! Victory against all odds. Let them learn!

Lamine Yamal, Ferran Torres and... Kounde. He's a chosen one. And he's our chosen one. It doesn't matter if he showed up with yellow hair before the final if he plays the game he does afterward. He's a teenager, and teenagers do things like that. And what's the problem? He decided when to stop time, halt the racing heart rate of a final against Real Madrid, draw three Real Madrid defenders to end up passing the ball for Pedri's stunning goal. Ferran would also assist for the 2-2 draw. It was the Valencian's Copa del Rey: decisive in the semifinal—he scored 1-0 at the Metropolitano—and scored again in the final. Kounde would unleash euphoria.

Thanks, Hansi. No one, absolutely no one, could have imagined that at this point in the season the team would be first in the League, would qualify for the Champions League semi-finals six seasons later, and would reach the Cup final. After a memorable first half, Barça paid dearly for not having sealed the victory. The Blaugranas, once again, found the strength and energy to come back. In just a handful of months, Hansi Flick has restored the team's soul and the enthusiasm of all the fans. Barça's heart is beating strongly again, and they can dream of a treble.