Ousmane Dembele scored the first goal for Barcelona in a friendly match against Real Madrid on Saturday. Later goals from Fermin Lopez and Ferran Torres helped Barcelona earn a 3-0 victory against Real Madrid.
The outcome was unjust for Carlo Ancelotti’s squad, as they had plenty of chances but failed to capitalize on any of them despite hitting the post five times. However, the superior finishing ability of Barcelona, the team who won the Spanish championship, proved to be the deciding factor.
Despite the fact that it was only a pre-season warm-up game, AT&T Stadium, which is the home of the National Football League’s Dallas Cowboys, was filled to capacity to see a game that had all the passion and devotion of a true derby.
Oriel Romeu’s thunderous drive in the fourth minute jarred the crossbar of Real, and the audience rose to its feet almost immediately after that. However, Barcelona’s supporters were soon celebrating their team’s victory.
Dembele was able to perfectly drive the ball into the far corner after Pedri had deftly played the free kick situation to his advantage by sliding a diagonal pass into the path of Dembele.
Just five minutes later, Real had a fantastic opportunity to tie the game when Barcelona defender Ronald Araujo committed a foul inside the penalty area, but Real’s Vinicius Junior missed the target with his penalty kick.
Rodrygo then pushed Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen into a great, full-length save with a free-kick that was soaring towards the top corner of the goal. The action was nonstop as Marc-Andre ter Stegen made the save.
Vinicius hit the crossbar, then Jude Bellingham’s header, although beating Marc-André ter Stegen to the ball, hit the post. This time, the woodwork denied Real another opportunity to score.
At the opposite end of the field, Dembele had an opportunity for a second when a mistake made by Ferland Mendy enabled him to burst through on goal. However, the French forward’s weak attempt was easily dealt with by Thibaut Courtois.
After Frenkie de Jong made a sliding challenge from behind on Eder Militao, tempers erupted, and players from both sides began to scuffle on the half-way line. The break in play probably came as a relief to the American referee Allen Chapman.
After halftime, Real’s run of bad luck continued when Aurelien Tchouameni sent a shot that hit the crossbar, and Vinicius, who had been tormenting Real from the left side, poked a shot from a tight angle that was just wide of the goal.
Fermin Lopez, who came in as a replacement for Barcelona, made it 2-0 with a spectacular blast from beyond the box in the 85th minute after being set up by Sergi Roberto. There was no letup from either side, despite the fact that there were several substitutes, but Barcelona’s finishing proved to be the difference.
Incredibly, Vinicius hit the bar again with his shot from a tight angle after making a jinking move in from the left, and Barca sealed the victory in stoppage time.
Ferran Torres displayed great awareness and balance to turn and slot the ball into the empty goal after running on to a lofted pass that was played by Lopez. He lifted the ball over Courtois, who was gaining on the ball, and then scored.
Things may have turned out differently.
Xavi Hernandez, the head coach of Barcelona, acknowledged that the scoreline was misleading.
“The result could have been different, the result is somewhat misleading, Madrid also had many chances, and we shouldn’t be overconfident,” he added. “The result is a bit misleading.”
“Even if the score is in our favor, it does not indicate that we put together a great performance. There are a lot of areas that need to be worked on. He said that it was a really close encounter in which both Madrid and us had several opportunities.
Xavi was also uncertain about whether or not he had sufficient depth for the forthcoming season.
I believe that Madrid has a roster that is far larger than ours. “As the game was winding down, they were subbing players out, and they have a large number of players in the middle who can both physically and technically play the game, so they have a lot of options,” he added.
“We endeavored to play and impose our game on the situation, and in many instances, we were successful.” He said, “I am satisfied with the way that we competed, and in many moments we looked like what it is that we want to be.”
Ancelotti, who played down the result, was happy with a number of different parts of the game.
“The outcome is not the most essential consideration. Losing is never easy, but I’ll take solace in the fact that we gave it our all,” stated Ancelotti.
“We were good in terms of intensity, and we had a lot of chances that didn’t go in,” the coach said after the game. It is quite unusual for there to be five (against the woodwork) in a single game; I do not believe that it has ever occurred to me. However, it is preferable for it to take place during the preseason,” the Italian said.