Spanish Super Cup: Barcelona vs Osasuna Live
Preview
Barcelona and Osasuna will compete in Saudi Arabia on Thursday to secure a spot in the Spanish Super Cup final. Barcelona, the current La Liga champions, will face Osasuna, who are participating in the Spanish Super Cup after being runners-up in last season’s Copa del Rey.
Barcelona is heading to Saudi Arabia with the goal of defending the Spanish Super Cup title they won last season. They secured the victory with a penalty-shootout win over Real Betis and a 3-1 win against Real Madrid in the final. This win marked their first victory in the competition since the introduction of the four-team format in 2018-19. However, Barcelona has a strong history in the Spanish Super Cup, having won the trophy 14 times.
Under Xavi’s leadership, the team ended 2023 with a 3-2 win over Almeria and started the new year with two victories, including a 3-2 Copa del Rey win against Barbastro. Despite their recent successes, Barcelona has struggled to dominate games, with their last 12 victories all being by a one-goal margin. Xavi’s main focus is now on guiding the team to their third Spanish Super Cup final in four seasons.
Osasuna are eagerly anticipating their inaugural appearance in the Spanish Super Cup following a remarkable journey to last season’s Copa del Rey final, where they were ultimately defeated 2-1 by Real Madrid. Despite finishing seventh last season, they have struggled this time around, currently sitting in 12th place with 22 points from 19 league matches.
However, they recently secured a victory against Almeria and clinched an extra-time win over Castellon. While they have struggled to score in their recent matches, they have demonstrated defensive strength, keeping three clean sheets in their last four outings. As the underdogs in the competition, Osasuna will need to rely on their defensive resilience to challenge Barcelona and potentially secure a spot in the final against Real Madrid on Sunday.
Head-to-head
Barcelona has emerged victorious in six of their last seven matches against Osasuna with one draw, including a 2-1 victory in the league game in September. In that match, Lewandowski scored an 86th-minute penalty to secure the win.
Prediction
Barcelona is expected to have the necessary skill to defeat Osasuna, but their recent wins indicate that they may only secure a narrow victory, as they have won by a one-goal difference in their last three encounters with Los Rojillos.
