Real Madrid will take a 3-1 lead into the second leg of their Supercopa de Espana meeting with Barcelona following a controversial opening 90 minutes to the tie at Camp Nou.
Los Blancos saw their lead, given to them by a Gerard Pique own goal, cancelled out from the spot when Luis Suarez appeared to dive to win a penalty.
Cristiano Ronaldo was introduced from the bench and put his side back in front, before being sent off for two cautions in quick succession, but it was the 10 men of Madrid who found the next goal through a Marco Asensio belter.
Relive how the 90 minutes of action unfolded with Sports Mole's live text coverage below.
Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live text coverage of the Supercopa de Espana first-leg clash between Copa del Rey holders Barcelona and La Liga champions Real Madrid at Camp Nou. The Spanish football season gets up and running with a tasty El Clasico encounter, with this the first meeting between the great rivals in this competition since 2012.
This annual curtain-raiser has provided many entertaining tussles down the years, while any meeting between Barca and Madrid - no matter what stage of the season - simply cannot be missed. There is a chance for one of these sides to claim first blood ahead of a long campaign over the next few days, with the second leg to be played in the Spanish capital late on Wednesday night.
BARCELONA TEAM NEWS!
STARTING XI: Ter Stegen; Vidal, Pique, Umtiti, Alba; Busquets, Rakitic, Iniesta; Messi, Suarez, Deulofeu
SUBS: Cillessen, Semedo, D.Suarez, Mascherano, Alcacer, Digne, Roberto
No real surprises in the Barca XI, then, with Ernesto Valverde again going with Gerard Deulofeu in the frontline following the loss of superstar forward Neymar to Paris Saint-Germain. It is otherwise a settled forward six, with Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez carrying even more weight on their shoulders this campaign, while Ivan Rakitic, Andres Iniesta and Sergio Busquets will sit slightly deeper.
Marc-Andre ter Stegen has been selected between the sticks, meanwhile, despite Jasper Cillessen often being used in cup competitions - maybe we will see him in the second leg at the Bernabeu. In front of Ter Stegen are Aleix Vidal, Gerard Pique, Samuel Umtiti and Jordi Alba, with the starting lineup very much picking itself this evening. Valverde will stick with the 4-3-3 formation, rather than ripping it up and starting from scratch following Neymar's exit.
Deulofeu picked up a knock in the 5-0 win over Chapecoense six days ago, but that was never likely to keep him out of this one. Valverde may have experimented a little ahead of the new campaign but he is clearly settled on this XI, meaning that the former Everton forward will have another chance to impress. Andre Gomes and Thomas Vermaelen are the two notable absentees from the squad.
REAL MADRID TEAM NEWS!
STARTING XI: Navas; Carvajal, Ramos, Varane, Marcelo; Casemiro; Kroos, Kovacic; Isco; Bale, Benzema
SUBS: Casilla, Nacho, Ronaldo, Theo Hernandez, Vazquez, Asensio, Ceballos
Switching focus to the visiting side, Zinedine Zidane also has a near full-strength side available to choose from. The big-name absentee is Cristiano Ronaldo, who is still being eased back to full fitness after being given an extended summer break following his Confederations Cup exploits with Portugal earlier in the summer. Ronaldo is among the subs, though, and will surely be given 30 minutes or so tonight.
The absence of Ronaldo will likely see Zidane go with a front-two pairing of Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale, with Isco - fresh on the back of his goal against Manchester United in the UEFA Super Cup - the most advanced of the midfield players. Toni Kroos, Casemiro and Mateo Kovacic will sit further back; the latter filling in for Luka Modric who, rather incredibly, is banned tonight due to a red picked up in this competition three years ago.
Modric will be back in contention for the return leg in a few days' time, but his absence tonight will no doubt will be felt. The defence has a more familiar look about it, however, as Dani Carvajal, Raphael Varane, Sergio Ramos and Marcelo line up in the back four. Keylor Navas, and not Kiko Casilla, is given the nod in goal by Zidane, while Jesus Vallejo misses out on contention entirely due to injury.
The big team news from Cap Nou is that Cristiano Ronaldo misses out for Real Madrid due to a stuttered summer programme for the Portugal international, having taken part in the Confederations Cup in June. Luka Modric is also absent due to suspension, meaning that Isco is pushed high up the pitch and Mateo Kovacic selected in a defensive-midfield berth. Summer signings Theo Hernandez and Dani Ceballos are among the subs and are expected to play some part.
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Another chance for Valverde to run the rule over his players this evening after taking over from Luis Enrique earlier this summer. Enrique bowed out with a Copa del Rey crown to show for his final season - simply not a good enough return for a club of Barcelona's stature, but the popular boss was a success over the duration of his three years and leaves big shows to be filled.
Barca fell short in La Liga and the Champions League, both of which were won by tonight's opponents just to rub salt into the wounds. The Catalans never truly looked settled in Europe and, after producing one of the all-time great comebacks to edge past Paris Saint-Germain, they were sent packing by a resolute Juventus side in the quarter-finals. It was a similar story in the league; huffing and puffing but failing to oust Madrid.
The title race went right down to the wire in May but Los Blancos did very well to hold their nerve, beating Malaga on the final day to confirm their first title success in five years. It was a 3-2 victory at the Bernabeu for Barca in April that ensured that the race for top spot would likely go the distance, though Madrid showed no further signs of slipping up and went on to achieve a dream double.
In the end Barcelona were undone by some poor results against the division's so-called lesser lights, dropping points against the likes of Alaves, Celta Vigo, Real Sociedad, Villarreal, Real Betis, Deportivo La Coruna and Malaga. They were never going to win every game, of course, but Enrique's men looked far from their best too often and lacked the aura we have become so accustomed to over the years.
They did end the season with seven-successive league wins, though, scoring 28 goals and conceding nine in the process. Barca were still on course to win a domestic and European treble with around a month of the season left to play, in fact, almost making a mockery of Enrique's announcement that he intended to bow out, but as it transpired they did not have enough in the tank to oust Madrid in La Liga and they lacked the quality to advance in the Champions League.
It did feel like the right time for Enrique to bow out when he did, particularly after lifting the Copa del Rey with a 3-1 win over Alaves - his ninth major managerial honour at Camp Nou. Valverde is the man tasked with wrestling back the La Liga title, and he will need no warning of the pressure he faces as he spent a couple of years here as a player between 1988 and 1990, winning the Copa del Rey and Cup Winners' Cup.
The 2015 Supercopa success against Barca was actually Valverde's biggest result as Athletic Bilbao boss, and he has also had varying degrees of success managing abroad in the past. This is a different beast entirely, however, with the task at hand made all the more difficult by the loss of Neymar with a month of the transfer window left to run. Just two-and-a-half weeks to go now, in fact, so time is fast ticking down to bring in a replacement.
Nelson Semedo is the only big-name arrival at Camp Nou so far, joining in a £30.5m deal, while Gerard Deulofeu was also brought back on a permanent deal and Marlon Santos made a permanent fixture in the first-team squad. Barca will surely spend all of the £198m windfall received from Neymar's sale on a couple of new recruits, though, with Philippe Coutinho and Ousmane Dembele the names in the frame at the moment.
Since beating Alaves in the Copa del Rey final a few months ago, Barcelona have overcome Juventus, Manchester United, Real Madrid and Chapecoense. The most recent of their summer friendlies, played against the Brazilian club as part of the annual Joan Gamper Trophy clash, so five different players register in a straightforward win - Deulofeu, Busquets, Denis Suarez, Luis Suarez and Messi. A positive start to life at Barca for Valverde, then, but this is their first taste of competitive action.
Former Athletic Bilbao boss Ernesto Valverde is tasked with wrestling the La Liga title back from Real Madrid in his first season in charge, having taken over from Luis Enrique this summer. Barcelona have been rocked by the loss of Neymar to Paris Saint-Germain, but reports suggest that they could push through big-money deals for both Ousmane Dembele and Philippe Coutinho before the transfer window closes.
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PREVIOUS MEETINGS! These great rivals have met on 267 previous occasions, stretching back to the first meeting in 1929 when Real won 2-1 in a Spanish top-flight clash. Barcelona boast the better record overall, though, winning 111 times to their opponents' 97, including a dramatic 3-2 victory the last time they met in April thanks to a superb Lionel Messi performance.
For all those who suggest Zidane was simply in the right place at the right time when taking over this talented Madrid side, it is worth mentioning that no man has guided Los Blancos to a European and league double since 1958. The Frenchman has managed to get the best out of each of his players and kept them motivated over the duration of another gruelling campaign, which saw them lose just five game in all.
Not only did Madrid hold their nerve in the La Liga title race in the closing weeks of the season, they also crushed Juventus 4-1 in the Champions League final to become the first side to retain the trophy in its current guise. That is now a couple of European crowns for Zidane, on top of two UEFA Super Cups, the FIFA Club World Cup and one La Liga. All this in the space of just 19 months - quite some record.
All that begs the question - what next for Zidane? Well, there is the small matter of winning a treble, having seen his side knocked out of the Copa del Rey last season at the quarter-final stage. Simply retaining the La Liga and Champions League crowns would be a huge achievement in itself, though, and on the basis of their UEFA Super Cup success against Manchester United earlier this week you would not bet against them doing exactly that.
The wheels could so easily have come off for Zidane following the crazy 3-2 defeat at home to Barcelona, fresh on the back of being held to a late 1-1 draw by Atletico Madrid. That left the door open for the Catalans to pounce, though they responded in style by picking up six wins on the spin to see out the campaign, culminating in the 2-0 win away to Malaga to earn their first title in five years. Another big year now awaits Zidane, who has already written his name into managerial folklore.
It could be argued that Real Madrid are slightly weaker than a few months ago, however, after allowing Danilo, James Rodriguez and Alvaro Morata - each of whom played a part in last term's famous double - to depart the club. Dani Ceballos and Theo Hernandez, both on the bench tonight, have been brought in as replacements but lack the Galactico tag. Kylian Mbappe is reportedly on the Spanish side's radar, so that could all change in the coming days and weeks.
In terms of their pre-season results, Los Blancos lost to Manchester United, Manchester City and Barcelona in the United States, before overcoming an MLS All-Stars team on penalties. The 2-1 win over Man United in this week's UEFA Super Cup was hailed by Zidane as a "near perfect" performance by his side, so there is certainly a sign of improvement as the summer has gone on, leading up to this huge double-header against their arch-rivals.
DID YOU KNOW? Madrid and Barcelona have played each other 12 times in the Supercopa de Espana; Los Blancos coming out on top in six of those encounters and losing four, while the Catalans are yet to win at the Bernabeu in this competition. Barca have lifted the trophy a record 12 times, while falling short a further nine times; Madrid have nine trophies to their name, most recently prevailing in 2014.
The two sets of players have just emerged from the Camp Nou tunnel, with kickoff now a couple of minutes away. A packed ground this evening, albeit not quite a sell out, for what should be an entertaining fixture to kick off the new Spanish football season. Here we go...
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KICKOFF! Barcelona get us up and running at Camp Nou, aiming to get one over on their opponents following their largely disappointing campaign of 2016-17. Barca with a front three this evening, while Isco is high up in a 4-1-3-2 for Madrid.
SHOT! A shot inside the first couple of minutes from Kovacic after a Ter Stegen error. The keeper's attempted pass was cut out by Isco and, from around 40 yards out, Kovacic saw his shot easily handled. Worth a try!
Fairly tentative start to the contest in Catalonia. Isco playing a strange role, being allowed to drift around the pitch in an attempt to pick up the ball. No real gaps for him to exploit thus far in the first leg of this Super Cup tie.
Barcelona as reluctant as ever to punt the ball forward, calmly playing it out from the back. Iniesta was caught in possession, though, giving Real a chance to counter. No real flow to the match in these opening seven minutes or so.
SAVE! A first sight of goal for the hosts, as Suarez brings down a ball over the top with his first touch and then gets a shot on target with his second. A difficult one from a slight angle, in truth, and Navas was always favourite to save it.
Barcelona the side playing the better football over the past five minutes or so, looking to thread the ball through for Suarez. Just the one attempt on target for them so far - Suarez testing Navas a few moments ago from an angle.
The ball is played through for Deulofeu, who appeared to be wrongly flagged for offside - certainly a very tight one. Suarez with an impressive flicked pass to Vidal from the next attack, but he failed to pick out a teammate when getting into the box.
SHOT! Boos around Camp Nou as Madrid are allowed to continue playing despite a home player being down injured. Isco eventually gets a shot away, sending it into the side-netting. Pretty much as close as the visitors have come so far.
YELLOW CARD! The first flashpoint of the evening as Casemiro wipes out Messi, rightly earning a yellow card. A few Barca players unhappy with the challenge but the referee handled it well and the situation soon quietened down.
Nearly a quarter of the match now played and we are still goalless at Camp Nou. Not been a great deal of chances, with Navas forced into making the only serious stop to keep out a well-hit Suarez attempt nine minutes into the game.
Barcelona again enjoying a prolonged spell of possession, without doing too much to hurt their opponents. The ball is spread from left to right and then back to the left, but there is no way around the back of the Madrid defence.
Messi calls for a yellow card to be shown to Bale after the Welshman mistimed his challenge to concede a free kick. The referee did not abide but he did at least have a free kick 25 yards from goal, which skimmed the roof of the net.
Madrid have struggled to click into gear so far on enemy territory in the absence of star man Cristiano Ronaldo. Barely seen Bale and Benzema in the opening 25 minutes, while the same can be said of Barca's attacking stars to a slightly lesser extent.
YELLOW CARD! Barcelona defender Gerard Pique becomes the second player of the evening to be shown a yellow card. The Spain international deliberately handled a corner into the box, sending his illegal effort wide of the target.
SAVE! Marcelo works some space down the left when up against Vidal, sending a decent delivery into the box. Well defended by the hosts in the end, while from the next move Casemiro's long-range shot was right at Ter Stegen down the middle.
The foul count steadily climbing as this first half wares on. Not a great deal of quality on the whole, but we do at least have an evenly-balanced contest on our hands, much like was anticipated before a ball was kicked.
Both defences just standing firm at the moment, managing to clear away each ball that comes into the area. Suarez with some nice work towards the right-hand side but all he can show for it is a throw-in high up the pitch, which comes to little.
Bit of confusion at the back for Madrid, but full-back Dani Carvajal got a toe to the ball before Luis Suarez was able to fire away on goal. Ten minutes of the half left to play and it is the home side who are just about on top at the moment.
SAVE! A first real save of the evening for Ter Stegen to make, as he helps over Bale's snapshot. The Welshman did pretty much all he could, taking on the attempt first time from close range and coming close to bagging the opener.
YELLOW CARD! The match is just threatening to boil over now due to the number of challenges. Bale caught Busquets but the situation soon quietened down, but Carvajal then clattered Iniesta to become the fifth player to be shown a yellow card.
Barcelona back to their patient passing player, working the ball through the middle and then down the flanks. Madrid have formed a solid shape at the back, though, making it very tough for their opponents to get in behind.
Good play from the hosts but, yet again, there was no end product as the cross from the left was easily cleared. Iniesta at the heart of that move, with the Spaniard starting to grow into the match a little more in an attacking sense.
HALF TIME: BARCELONA 0-0 REAL MADRID
The half-time whistle sounds at Camp Nou, meaning that we remain goalless at the midway point. Both sides have had sights of goal, with Ter Stegen and Navas producing one big stop apiece, but the attacking quality has been lacking on the whole.
Matteo Kovacic, filling in for the suspended Luka Modric, saw a cheeky attempt from range easily dealt with by Marc-Andre ter Stegen a minute into the match after the keeper's attempted pass was cut out. There was a chance for Luis Suarez up the other end soon after, taking down a ball over the top with his first touch and testing Keylor Navas from a slight angle with his second.
Isco picked out the side-netting and Casemiro's belter was hit straight at Ter Stegen in a first half lacking any real attacking quality, with Bale's snapshot late in the opening 45 minutes - helped over the bar by the Barca keeper - as close as either side came to an opener. The contest certainly had an edge to it, though, as five players were shown a yellow card in the first half in a match that has threatened to boil over.
We will definitely see Cristiano Ronaldo at some point in the second half - could Zidane be tempted to introduce him at the interval, or instead wait until the hour mark? Barca have some options of their own, including Denis Suarez and Paco Alcacer.
BARCELONA SUBS: Cillessen, Semedo, D.Suarez, Mascherano, Alcacer, Digne, Roberto
REAL MADRID SUBS: Casilla, Nacho, Ronaldo, Theo Hernandez, Vazquez, Asensio, Ceballos
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RESTART! Real Madrid gets us back under way at Camp Nou, in front of the 89,514 watching spectators. The first half lacked attacking quality overall, but fingers crossed for a livelier second 45 in this two-legged tie.
No changes made by either manager at the interval, incidentally, so we are being made to wait for Ronaldo's introduction. Messi pleads for a penalty when, after weaving past a couple of defenders, he went down under alleged contact from Ramos.
GOAL! BARCELONA 0-1 REAL MADRID (GERARD PIQUE, OWN GOAL)
An absolute howler from Gerard Pique, who puts into his own net when attempting to clear away Marcelo's cross. It was not a particularly difficult one, either, with little danger around him, but he could only send it past Ter Stegen when sliding in.
Gerard Pique almost scored a second own goal in the space of two minutes. Benzema the latest to enjoy plenty of space down the left, sending in a cross which the centre-back this time diverts narrowly wide of his own target.
CHANCE! Barcelona's best chance of the match so far. Vidal's cross somehow made its way right through the box to Deulofeu, who appeared to be caught in two minds when well positioned. In the end his curled shot-cross ended wide of the target.
OFF THE LINE! Madrid with absolute acres of space in attack once again - Barcelona have completely lost their shape in this second half. Benzema did well down the left and, after sending the ball across goal for Carvajal, the Spaniard seemed certain to convert, only for Vidal to slide in and block on the line.
REAL MADRID SUB! A sixth caution of the evening, the latest of which has been shown to Sergio Busquets for bringing down Isco. Zidane turns to the ace in his pack, bringing on Ronaldo for Benzema with an hour of the match played.
BARCELONA SUB! Valverde has also made a change, introducing Denis Suarez for the ineffective Gerard Deulofeu. Barca win another corner, which Luis Suarez heads on target for Keylor Navas to tip over the crossbar.
Far livelier contest since Madrid opened the scoring, with both teams asserting some sustained pressure. Barcelona the team on top at the moment in search of a leveller, but Madrid are thriving off the gaps that are opening up.
Messi picks up the ball in the hole but cannot find a route through to goal. A frustrating evening for him thus far but he can so often muster a moment of magic from absolutely nowhere, so do not bet against him finding a way through eventually.
SUBS! Kovacic went down with what appeared to be a thigh injury, meaning the end of his evening. Marco Asensio is on in his place, while the hosts also make an alteration - Sergi Roberto taking over from Andres Iniesta.
CHANCE! A quarter of the match left for Barcelona to find a response. Madrid come close to bagging a second, with Ronaldo's audacious bicycle-kick attempt at the end of a Bale cross ending narrowly wide of the target.
GOAL DISALLOWED! Madrid really closing in on a second goal now. Marcelo was played in by Ronaldo but saw his shot kept out by Ter Stegen. Ronaldo did manage to beat the Barca keeper, only for the offside flag to go up.
CHANCE! Denis Suarez with the weakest of attempts on Navas's goal. A better chance fell the way of Busquets, who somehow failed to find the target from close range after a loose ball fell nicely for him. Gripping second half here!
PENALTY TO BARCELONA! Non-stop action now at Camp Nou. Messi had two attempts brilliantly kept out by Navas in quick succession, before the Madrid keeper was accused of bringing down Suarez. Replays show that contact was minimal - and that it putting it kindly - but the decision has gone Barca's way.
GOAL! BARCELONA 1-1 REAL MADRID (LIONEL MESSI, PEN)
Penalties have never been Messi's strongest point, but he sent Navas the wrong way on this occasion to level up. Denis Suarez was slotted through moments after the restart but he placed his shot wide of the far post. Big chance!
GOAL! BARCELONA 1-2 REAL MADRID (CRISTIANO RONALDO)
He may not have started but you always knew Ronaldo would have a say on this game. Twenty minutes after being introduced from the bench the Portuguese cut inside from the left and sent a quite sublime shot flying past Ter Stegen from the edge of the box.
RED CARD! What a half this has been! Ronaldo goes down inside the box and appeared to have won his side a penalty kick. The referee instead booked him for diving and, having already seen yellow for taking his shirt off when celebrating, Ronaldo is dismissed.
You cannot take your eyes of this El Clasico encounter. A couple of hugely controversial decisions, the latest of which led to Ronaldo's dismissal. Umtiti definitely made contact with the Portuguese, so unless the second yellow was for dissent that was incredibly harsh.
This game still has another goal in it, with both teams going all out for another. Still a second leg to play at the Bernabeu on Wednesday night, remember - let us hope it is half as good as what we have seen in this second half!
GOAL! BARCELONA 1-3 REAL MADRID (MARCO ASENSIO)
A stunning third of the evening for Madrid on the counter, scored by second-half sub Marco Asensio. The youngster was slipped in and rifled the ball past Ter Stegen, putting Barca on the verge of Supercopa de Espana success.
The referee has added on two minutes at the end of the second half. Barcelona look defeated at this stage, needing to seriously pick themselves up for that return match in a few days' time. Great performance from Los Blancos this evening.
FULL TIME: BARCELONA 1-3 REAL MADRID
The referee blows his whistle for full time, bringing the end to a highly entertaining contest at Camp Nou. While the first half lacked attacking quality, the second was as gripping as you will see all season, providing numerous talking points, a red card and four goals. The first El Clasico of the campaign certainly lived up to the hype!
That concludes Sports Mole's live text coverage of events at Camp Nou. An on-the-whistle report can be found by clicking here, and be sure to join us for updates from the second leg of this Supercopa de Espana tie on Wednesday night. See you then!
