Barcelona Player Ratings vs. Athletic Club: Defending Super Cup Champions Electric Without Yamal

The Catalans scored five goals in 30 minutes to cruise to the Spanish Super Cup final.

Raphinha bagged three goal contributions on the night. / Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto/Getty Images

Barcelona ran riot in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in the Spanish Super Cup semifinals, defeating Athletic Club 5–0 in a performance as lopsided as can be.

After an unconvincing Catalan derby victory at the weekend, there were slight concerns over how the Barcelona would fare against Ernesto Valverde’s men, especially with Lamine Yamal starting the match on the bench.

Any doubts were quickly silenced, though, as the game unfolded at Alinma Bank Stadium. Barcelona completely dismantled Athletic Club, scoring four goals in the span of 16 minutes in the first half. Ferran Torres, Fermín López, Roony Bardghji and Raphinha all got on the scoresheet before the halftime whistle.

Raphinha bagged his brace after the restart, clinching a dominant victory that sent Hansi Flick’s side to the Spanish Super Cup final, where they will look to defend their title against either Real Madrid or Atlético Madrid.

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Barcelona Player Ratings vs. Athletic Club (4-2-3-1)

Fermín López was involved in three of Barcelona’s five goals. / Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto/Getty Images

*Ratings provided by FotMob*

GK: Joan García—7.8: Won the goalkeeping battle against Unai Simón with ease, though it must be said he had little to do. Still, García will hope he gave Spain boss Luis de la Fuente something to think about.

RB: Jules Koundé—7.3: Tidy in possession, but still found himself beaten by the dribbling ability of Robert Navarro on more than one occasion, a warning sign for the upcoming final.

CB: Pau Cubarsí—7.3: Used the lopsided score to turn the game into somewhat of a passing drill out the back.

CB: Eric García—7.9: Perhaps his easiest performance this season. Spent most of the night simply sweeping up at the back from the halfway line.

LB: Alejandro Balde—7.0: Linked up well with Raphinha, but was ultimately more than happy to let his teammates take control of the game, only intervening when necessary to silence Álex Berenguer.

DM: Pedri—7.5: Looked like he was at a training session. Effortlessly dictated the flow of play and had more quality in just one of his passes than nearly all of Athletic Club’s midfielders.

DM: Frenkie de Jong—6.7: A quiet 64 minutes from De Jong, whose defensive contributions were seldom needed in Jeddah.

RW: Roony Bardghji—9.2: Stepped up with sensational playmaking and even snagged a goal of his own to make Yamal wildly unneeded in the semifinal bout.

AM: Fermín López—9.3: Disappointed in the early stages, but completely made up for it with his three goal contributions in a performance good enough to keep Dani Olmo on the bench in the final.

LW: Raphinha—9.3: At home on the left after struggling in a more central position at the weekend. Would have likely tallied more than just a brace and an assist had he played the full 90 minutes given just how much he made a fool of Jesús Areso.

ST: Ferran Torres—7.9: Once again stood out for his expert positioning and clinical finishing. Will be disappointed, though, to only walk away with one goal against such a poor defense.

Substitutes	Rating (Out of 10)
Gerard Martín (64’ for Balde)	6.2
Marc Bernal (64’ for De Jong)	6.4
Marcus Rashford (64’ for Raphinha)	6.6
Lamine Yamal 72’ for Bardghji)	6.9
Dani Olmo 72’ for Pedri)	6.0

Subs not used: Diego Kochen (GK), Wojciech Szczęsny (GK), Dani Olmo, Dro Fernandez, Tommy Marques, Marc Casadó, Robert Lewandowski.

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Athletic Club (4-2-3-1)

Starting XI: Unai Simón; Jesús Areso, Dani Vivian, Aitor Paredes, Adama Boiro; Mikel Jauregizar, Alejandro Rego; Álex Berenguer, Oihan Sancet, Robert Navarro; Iñaki Williams.

Subs used: Gorka Guruzeta, Íñigo Ruiz de Galarreta, Unai Gómez, Iñigo Lekue, Selton Sánchez.

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Player of the Match: Raphinha (Barcelona)

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Barcelona 5–0 Athletic Club—How It Unfolded at Alinma Bank Stadium

A sold-out crowd in Jeddah watched Barcelona dismantle Athletic Club. / Fadel Senna/AFP/Getty Images

Even without Yamal, Barcelona got off to a bright start in Jeddah. The Catalans controlled nearly every second of the early stages, poking and prodding at Athletic Club’s low block in search of the game’s opener.

Raphinha and Fermín López had glorious chances to get on the scoresheet, but the two players lacked quality in the final third, prompting groans throughout the heavily-favored Barcelona crowd at Alinma Bank Stadium. Still, it felt only a matter of time before Flick’s men broke the early deadlock.

Roony Bardghji did his best Yamal impression on the right flank, getting the better of Adama Boiro before finding Fermín in the center of the penalty area. The Spaniard pulled his ensuing shot horribly wide, but lucky for him—and his team—the ball fell right to Torres, who put the hosts up 1–0 in the 22nd minute with a right-footed strike.

The Shark Attack. pic.twitter.com/bXsMClny5u

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) January 7, 2026

Fermín might not deserve much credit for the assist, but he surely earned his place on the scoresheet at the half-hour mark. The 22-year-old capped off a brilliant sequence by Raphinha and Pedri with a thrashing finish from 12 yards out.

Athletic Club goalkeeper Unai Simón had no chance of stopping the powerful strike, but he was shamefully at fault for Barcelona’s third goal just four minutes later. The Spain international looked to make a routine save against a low shot from Bardghji, but he failed to stop the ball from rolling over the goal line.

Things quickly went from bad to worse for Valverde’s men. Already down three goals, the visitors lost seemingly all will to defend, even against one of Spanish soccer’s best forwards in Raphinha. Jesús Areso allowed the Brazilian to drive into the box and switch to his left foot, which soon smashed a sensational rocket into the roof of the net.

Third goal: Roony & fourth goal: Raphinha pic.twitter.com/T4wBJYdMII

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) January 7, 2026

Even with a 4–0 lead, Barcelona showed no desire to sit back and take their foot off the gas. The defending Spanish champions kicked off the second half in search of a fifth goal, and only had to wait eight minutes until Raphinha buried it thanks to some more shambolic defending from Athletic.

The frenetic pace of the game slowed down in the remaining 30 minutes. Once Flick took off most of his stars, including Raphinha, Pedri and the all-impressive Bardghji, the game lost its sting, even with a brief appearance from Yamal.

Athletic Club did what they could to try and bag a consolation goal as the minutes ticked on in Jeddah, but they ultimately booked their trip back to Bilbao completely humiliated while Barcelona punched their tickets to the Spanish Super Cup final.

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Barcelona vs. Athletic Club Halftime Stats

Statistic	Barcelona	Athletic Club
Possession	82%	18%
Expected Goals (xG)	1.68	0.71
Total Shots	8	3
Shots on Target	6	1
Big Chances	3	1
Pass Accuracy	94%	68%
Fouls	6	1
Corners	1	3

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Barcelona vs. Athletic Club Full Time Stats

Statistic	Barcelona	Athletic Club
Possession	80%	20%
Expected Goals (xG)	2.09	1.76
Total Shots	13	9
Shots on Target	7	3
Big Chances	3	3
Pass Accuracy	92%	68%
Fouls	8	7
Corners	5	5

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