WHO: Real Madrid vs Barcelona
What: Spanish Super Cup final
Where: King Abdullah Sports City, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
When: Sunday, 10:00 p.m. (7:00 p.m. GMT).
Follow Al Jazeera’s live text and photo breakdown and commentary stream.

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said his players could avenge their defeat to Barcelona earlier this season by winning the Spanish Super Cup on Sunday, but only if they avoid making the same mistakes.

Hansi Flick’s Barcelona beat Los Blancos 4-0 in LaLiga at the Santiago Bernabeu in October, although a slump before the winter break helped Real Madrid overtake them at the top of the table.

“We obviously have to think about this game, they beat us, we had a clear assessment of what happened,” Ancelotti told a news conference on Saturday ahead of the clash in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

“We started the game well but then struggled in the second half, so we have to try to repeat the good things we did and avoid the mistakes we made.”

“The Clasico is under even more pressure when it is a final. We played a lot against Barcelona and playing a final against them is always special.”

Can Madrid find compensation for Mbappe, Bellingham and Co.?

Madrid, which beat Mallorca 3-0 in the semi-finals on Thursday, is still searching for a balance between attack and defense in its game following the arrival of French superstar Kylian Mbappe from Paris Saint-Germain last year.

Together with Vinicius Junior, Jude Bellingham and Rodrygo Goes, the four players give Madrid a significant advantage going forward, but can harm the team if they are not focused defensively.

“(In recent Clasicos) individual quality takes precedence over team balance,” Ancelotti continued. “An important aspect (in the final) will be balance and working together – defense.

“If you defend well, your chances of winning are greater.”

Ancelotti previously said his worst memory of a successful 2024, in which Madrid won LaLiga and the Champions League, was the defeat to Barcelona.

“We are on the verge of another trophy, we think positively, but we know that anything can happen in football, especially when the opponent is strong and competes well like Barcelona,” added Ancelotti, whose team has won both European Super Championships Cup and Intercontinental Cup already this season.

“Our team has improved, no one can deny that. A defeat would not be good, but the team is not going backwards, it will continue to move forward.”

Will Barcelona bring in the temporarily relieved Olmo for Gavi?

Barcelona midfielder Dani Olmo will be able to play after the Catalans were controversially granted a temporary license for him by Spain’s National Sports Council (CSD).

The Spain international’s release came too late on Wednesday for him to play a role in the Catalan club’s 2-0 semi-final win over Athletic Bilbao.

“Olmo will play and we have to downgrade his quality,” said Ancelotti, who refused to give his opinion on the case that has aggravated Spanish football.

Flick, who replaced Barca legend Xavi as coach at the end of last season, said Olmo was ready to play but hinted he might not start after Gavi shone in the attacking midfield role in the semi-final against Athletic Bilbao.

“Gavi did a great performance against Athletic, he has confidence… I think he will play, but I’m not 100 percent sure who will play,” Flick said.

The Super Cup offers the German coach his first chance at the title since arriving in Barcelona.

“If we win we will have more confidence for the rest of the season,” added Flick. “Winning the game would be really big for anyone.”

What is the Supercopa de España?

In the Supercopa, the winners and runners-up of both the Spanish league LaLiga and the Spanish cup competition Copa del Rey meet.

Although it was first played only between the league and cup winners in 1982, it was expanded to four teams in 2020.

Real Madrid are the current league champions, Barcelona are in second place, while Athletic Bilbao are the cup winners, having beaten Mallorca in last season’s final.

Where will the Spanish Supercopa final be played?

This year’s Supercopa will be played in Saudi Arabia, with all three matches taking place at the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah.

The venue where the Saudi national team plays and will be part of the 2034 World Cup has already hosted the two semi-finals.

Who are the Supercopa holders?

Real Madrid won the 2024 Supercopa, beating Barcelona 4-1 in the final.

Last year’s edition was also held in Saudi Arabia, with Riyadh as the host city.

Vinicius Junior scored a hat-trick for Los Blancos in the first half, while Rodrygo sealed the deal in the second period after Robert Lewandowski scored Barca’s only goal.

Real defeated Madrid rivals Atletico in the semi-finals, while Barca defeated Osasuna.

News about the Real Madrid team

Aurelien Tchouameni, Federico Valverde and Jude Bellingham are all available for the final despite suffering defeats in Thursday’s semi-final.

Luca Modric remains Los Blancos’ biggest doubt after retiring on the day of their semi-final win over Mallorca.

Eder Militao and Dani Carvajal are both still out.

Real Madrid predicted XI: Courtois; Vazquez, Asencio, Rüdiger; Mendy; Valverde, Camavinga, Bellingham; Rodrygo, Mbappe, Vinicius Jr

Hansi Flick 🤝 Carlo Ancelotti#ElClasico pic.twitter.com/aVPsUtsIIC

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) January 11, 2025

Barcelona team news

Dani Olmo and Pau Victor are both available for Barca after being granted temporary registrations following the club’s protracted dispute with Spain’s Supreme Sports Council.

Andreas Christensen, Marc Bernal and Marc-Andre Ter Stegen are all missing for Barcelona. The biggest question for Barcelona is who will replace the latter in goal.

Former Arsenal keeper Wojciech Szczesny was handed the gloves for the semi-final win over Athletic Bilbao, but Inaki Pena is set to take over the role for the final.

Predicted Barcelona XI: Pena; Kounde, Cubarsi, Martinez, Balde; Casado, Pedri; Yamal, Olmo, Raphinha; Lewandowski

Form Guide – Real Madrid:

Real have hit form at the right time with five wins in a row and seven wins in an eight-game unbeaten run. Los Blancos had previously lost four of their last seven games, including their humiliation at home to Barca. Last five games: WWWWW

Form guide – Barcelona:

Barcelona appear to be slowly recovering from their worst run of the season, recording consecutive wins for the first time in 11 games. Previously, the Catalan club had only won three of nine games and suffered four defeats. This all came after Hansi Flick won 14 of his first 16 games as manager this season. Last five games: WLLWW

Head-to-head:

Real have won 105 of the 258 meetings between the two teams, with Barca emerging victorious 101 times.

Real had won the last four meetings between the teams – including the Spanish Super Cup in January and the Copa del Rey meeting last season – before the 4-0 defeat in LaLiga in October.