The Super Cup thermometer
In the last four years, the Super Cup has defined the season: whoever has won it has at least won La Liga – Real Madrid in 21/22 and 23/24 also added the Champions League title – so a tournament that has fallen into disrepute, tarnished since Rubiales and Piqué decided to sell it to Saudi Arabia – for the good of women, as the former RFEF president shamelessly claimed – has ended up being the barometer of what will happen next. Barça are the favorites after dispatching Espanyol in the derby with a stratospheric performance from Joan García, who dismantled them and are on a winning streak in La Liga, having won nine consecutive matches. The most coveted final is once again against Real Madrid, who must first overcome an Atlético side that already humiliated them in September with a 5-2 defeat that still stings. Furthermore, Mbappé's participation is up in the air. He injured himself trying to break a ridiculous record in Talavera de la Reina, a record no one will remember, and is practically ruled out for the match against Simeone's team. We'll see if he recovers in time for a hypothetical final. This is terrible news for Real Madrid fans, considering the season the Frenchman was having, even though they've suddenly regained their enthusiasm after the thrashing of Betis, thanks above all to the emergence of academy player Gonzalo, who debuted with a hat trick.
Barça is a more established team, one that knows how it wants to play, even if it doesn't always execute it with the perfection and spectacular flair that captivated fans last season. And on top of that, they now have Joan García. Flick also has a variety of options on the bench, a Plan B and even a Plan C, which Real Madrid lacks. Against Espanyol, the substitutions of Dani Olmo, Fermín, and Lewandowski proved crucial to the victory. Gonzalo had a dream debut, but placing the pressure of reviving his team in the Super Cup on a 21-year-old who has just joined the first team is overly optimistic, even for Real Madrid, historically the epitome of confidence. It will take much more than a youth academy player for Atlético and Barça to falter.