Good evening and welcome to Sports Mole's live coverage of the Spanish Super Cup second leg between Real Madrid and Barcelona at the Santiago Bernabeu.
The first leg between the two sides was an eventful affair that finished 3-2 in Barcelona's favour, a deficit that Jose Mourinho's men will be looking to overturn tonight.
Madrid have made a poor start to the season, still waiting for their first win, while Barcelona have recorded maximum points from their first two La Liga games.
Please note that kickoff is at 9.30pm.
11.40pmOK, that's all from me tonight! Thanks for joining us to see Madrid get an early season triumph over their greatest rival! Match analysis will be coming on site soon. Good night!
11.36pmThis is also the perfect way to bounce back from their shock defeat to Getafe at the weekend. Could this be the spark that kickstarts Madrid's season.
11.35pmSo tonight's match finished 2-1 to Madrid, giving them a win on away goals overall, with the aggregate score ending 4-4.
11.33pmCasillas lifts the trophy for the fourth time in his career before handing it to Modric, who has won more trophies in two days at Madrid than he did in four years at Spurs.
11.32pmBarcelona watch on as Madrid climb the stairs ahead of lifting the first piece of silverware this season.
11.31pmThree goals, one stunner each from Ronaldo and Messi, a red card, a disallowed goal and silverware being decided.
11.30pmThere is just something about these El Clasico matches that exude drama, and tonight's match was no different.
11.28pmWe'll have a full match report of tonight's thrilling tie on sight shortly.
11.24pmMessi came so close to being his side's hero yet again in the final minute, and you'd have to say that he should have scored given his high expectations. There aren't many people in the world you can say should have scored that chance, but Messi is top of the list.
11.23pmThere we have it, Jose Mourinho's Real Madrid win the first piece of silverware of the season courtesy of goals from Gonzalo Higuain and Cristiano Ronaldo.
90+3 minFULL-TIME: Real Madrid 2-1 Barcelona
90+2 minChance! What a finish to this match, Messi almost wins his side the silverware with a curling effort from the edge of the box, but it goes just wide.
90+1 minChance! At the other end of the pitch Barca have a good chance, but Montoya couldn't finish Messi's through ball.
90 minChance! Luka Modric almost caps his debut with a goal, but his shot is well blocked.
90 minThree minutes of stoppage time here! Can Barcelona get a dramatic late goal?
88 minChance! Ronaldo turns a half chance into a real goalscoring opportunity, holding off the defender before aiming for the bottom corner, but Valdes got down well.
87 min...which leads to nothing.
87 minIt results in another corner...
86 minSergio Ramos needlessly heads a free kick away for a corner. Chance for Barca here?
85 minThe away side have probably edged the second half despite being a man down.
84 minBarca are going to need to up the tempo soon, just over five minutes to grab a goal.
83 minMeanwhile, the second debutant of the evening is introduced, Luka Modric coming on for Ozil.
82 minBarca advance into the Madrid box through Iniesta, and the midfielder feeds Tello, who slices his effort.
80 minThat will be Higuain's last action of the match as Karim Benzema comes on, while Barca also make a chance, bringing Tello on for Pedro.
79 minOFF THE POST! That is a golden chance for Higuain again. Alonso ball finds the striker in acres of space, but Mascherano makes another great last ditch tackle to force the shot on to the post.
78 minMadrid make a chance during a break in play, bringing on Callejon in place of Di Maria.
75 minChance! They almost didn't need another! Jordi Alba is found with an incisive through ball and tries to take it past Casillas, but his touch is just too heavy.
75 minFew better players to grab you a goal when you need it most.
75 minSurely not long before we see David Villa?
74 minAlex Song is set to come on and make his debut for Barcelona here, who are being very patient in their search for a goal. Song does indeed come on in place of Sergio Busquets.
72 minSergio Ramos becomes the latest player in the book for hacking down Messi, who has been on the receiving end of a few heavy tackles tonight. If you can't beat 'em, kick 'em.
69 minIniesta goes for the spectacular there, trying to lob Casillas from the halfway line. I didn't think Messi could beat him from 30 yards, surely he'll never be beaten from 50!
68 minChance! Madrid almost get a third through an unlikely source. Khedira embarks on the type of run more associated with Ronaldo or Messi, and is only denied from scoring a fine solo effort by Valdes save. Barcelona's defence have looked scared to put a foot in at times tonight.
66 minA reminder that, as it stands, Madrid win the Super Cup on away goals. Barcelona need to score to change that.
63 minChance! Pedro comes close again as he flies down the right wing before cutting inside and trying to beat Casillas from a tight angle. Once again, though, the Madrid keeper was equal to it.
62 minSami Khedira picks up a yellow for a foul on Messi, but nothing comes of his long range free kick this time.
61 minChance! Great chance for Barcelona to equalise on the night and, guess what, it came from a long ball. Mascherano's lofted pass allowed Pedro to get behind the defence but the striker was denied by a good save from Casillas.
60 minMadrid are playing in a very un-Barcelona style, utilising the long ball tactic which, to be fair to them, has worked well so far.
58 minMessi is cutting an increasingly frustrated figure too.
57 minBarcelona are looking more like themselves on the ball now, but still haven't really threatened Madrid's defence from open play.
55 minDecent spell of possession for Barca as they knock it about midfield, but again they look uncharacteristically toothless up front.
53 minMadrid are making the most of their extra man in terms of dictating play, but they haven't been quite as incisive as they were in the first period.
49 minPique gets a yellow card for a handball after it looked as if the centre-back had got away with it. Nothing comes of the resulting free kick.
48 minMadrid have settled into this second half better, but still early stages.
46 minAnd Barcelona get us restarted.
22.33pmThe two sides are out for the second half.
22.31pm4-4 on aggregate, this second half promises to be eventful! Barca need to push for a win but with ten men Madrid could very realistically take advantage, especially the way they have been playing.
22.28pmJust going to point out that I predicted a 2-1 scoreline before the match...just in Barcelona's favour.
22.24pmMessi's goal was his 15th in El Clasico matches, overtaking Cesar as Barcelona's all-time leading scorer in the fixture.
22.22pmHowever, despite getting Barcelona back into the match with the goal, Messi will know that his side face an uphill battle to win this Super Cup with a man less.
22.21pmA little more on that Messi goal. The Argentinian forward had not been in the game at all before his strike, but the truly great players can come up with something special even when things aren't going their way.
22.20pmWow, that was some half. Madrid dominated for the vast majority of it, but Messi's phenomenal free kick has brought Barcelona back into it. It is still advantage Madrid, however, as they lead on away goals.
45+2 minHALF-TIME: Real Madrid 2-1 Barcelona
45+1 minChance! Angel di Maria cuts inside right on the stroke of half time but couldn't wrap his foot around the ball as he sent it wide.
45+1 minRonaldo almost responds in kind to the challenge laid down by Messi by unleashing an effort from a similar distance, which goes just wide.
44 minUnbelieveable! I didn't think anyone could beat Casillas from that range, but I suppose if anyone can then Messi can. Sublime strike.
44 minGOAL! (Messi)
43 minBarca have a free kick from around 30 yards out. Could it take something like this to get them back into this one?
39 minTito Vilanova's side are starting to come into this one now, or at least have stemmed the tide of Madrid's attack. At two goals down with ten men, though, is it too late?
37 minAlvaro Arbeloa has picked up a yellow card for a challenge that the referee played advantage from.
36 minJust as I say that, Barca get their first half-chance of the match. A goal mouth scramble eventually saw the ball fall to Andres Iniesta, who puts a dangerous ball in but no-one could get on the end of it.
35 minI'll say it again, Barca just can't get into this game. It looks like men against boys.
34 minMontoya is on the receiving end of another sublime piece of skill by Ronaldo, but the youngster gets back to dispossess the �80m man.
32 minChance! It hasn't worked though! Ronaldo sends Higuain through, and the striker is only denied at the last opportunity by a fine Mascherano tackle.
31 minAn early change for Barca as Montoya replaces Alexis Sanchez as the away side look to sort out their defence.
30 minThis match is living up to expectations, a highly eventful opening half an hour.
28 minChance! Madrid are just utterly dominant here... Marcelo, who has been superb so far tees up Sami Khedira who fires his shot into the arms of Valdes.
27 minRED CARD! Adriano brings down Ronaldo as the last man and Barca's night goes from bad to worse as he is shown the red card. A real mountain to climb now.
26 minMadrid lead 4-3 on aggregate now, a thoroughly deserved lead on this display.
24 minAnother ball into the box is punched clear by Valdes. Barcelona just can't get hold of the ball at the moment, and it's not often you can say that!
23 minDisallowed goal! Madrid think they've gone three up as Xabi Alonso's corner finds the head of Sergio Ramos, who converts, but the ref had already blown his whistle. Not quite sure what for though...
21 minChance! Another chance for Madrid! Again Higuain gets through, and in an almost mirror image of the first chance of the match, Valdes saves it with his feet. All Madrid so far!
21 minRonaldo also equals Ivan Zamarano's record of scoring in five consecutive El Clasicos.
20 minPepe becomes the second name in the book tonight. Going back to the Ronaldo goal, though, it was a bad error by Pique, but Ronaldo's flick over his head was superb.
18 minWow! Another calamitous mistake from the Barcelona defence, this time Gerard Pique failing to deal with the ball before Ronaldo flicked the ball over his head and fired past Valdes.
18 minGOAL!
17 minBarcelona haven't posed an attacking threat so far. Surely Madrid won't be able to keep this up for all 90 minutes?
15 minMadrid really look in the mood tonight! Barca are once again caught in possession in their own third and Marcelo fires a shot wide of the far post.
13 minWe have our first - and I suspect not our last - booking. Mascherano caps a torrid few minutes by bodychecking Angel di Maria to pick up the yellow.
11 minBarca look to respond immediately, with Alexis going down softly in the search for a penalty again before Messi failed to find his way through.
10 minReal Madrid take the lead! A poor mistake from Javier Mascherano after a long ball allows Higuain in and the Argentinian striker this time made no mistake.
10 minGOAL!
9 minBarcelona enjoy a decent spell of possession but Adriano's pass is too heavy and Madrid come forward again.
8 minMadrid have made the better start to this match. Barca looking a bit shaky in defence early on.
6 minsChance! Higuain gets through from Marcelo's pass but can't beat Victor Valdes from eight yards. Good save but Higuain should have done better.
5 minsA corner for Barca comes to nothing and Madrid break, but the away side get back in time to snuff out the attack.
9.35pmA half-hearted penalty shout for Barca as Alex goes down under the challenge of Marcelo, but the striker made the most of it. Correct decision.
9.33pmBarca come forward and Messi is on the end of a strong challenge but makes nothing of it. One of the most endearing qualities of Messi that.
9.32pmThe home side look like they're pushing on early hear, penning Barca back into their defensive third as Gonzalo Higuain shoots high over the bar.
9.31pmMadrid get us underway!
9.30pmThe two sides are out on the pitch as we near the start of this much-anticipated tie.
9.28pmAnother good stat coming up: A Barcelona win would see them lead the head to head between these two sides for the first time in 80 years. The two sides currently stand at 87 wins apiece.
9.27pmMessi is undoubtedly on fire at the moment. He has scored 20 (yes 20) goals in his last 11 games for club and country.
9.25pmMy 1-2 prediction is looking good.
9.25pmOne thing you can say about these games is that they produce goals. The away side have scored at least two goals in each of the last seven meetings between the two sides.
9.23pmNot to mention the delight that any win over their biggest rivals brings either side.
9.21pmSome people may think that Super Cup matches aren't big occasions, but rest assured that any match between these two draws a huge amount of interest.
9.20pmTen minutes until kickoff and the stadium is filling up nicely!
9.17pmGood little stat coming up: for his last 10 goals for club and country, Messi has been assisted as often by Madrid players as Barca players. Gonzalo Higuain and Angel di Maria setting up four goals for Messi with Argentina.
9.12pmWe're now less than 20 minutes from kickoff at the Bernabeu. These matches are always eventful and I don't expect this match to be any different!
9.08pmAny fans interested in the Celtic match, it is currently 1-0 to the Scottish side with just over an hour gone. Looks like Neil Lennon's men will be taking part in the Champions League proper this season.
9.06pmSo, who is going to pick up the first piece of silverware of the Spanish league season? For what it's worth, my money is on Barcelona. Madrid aren't on form and Messi is. 2-1 Barca for me.
9.02pmLionel Messi could also make personal history if he scores a hattrick(don't put it past him). That would see him equal his record goal tally for a calender year of 60. Can't help but think that it is only a matter of time before that gets broken anyway.
9pmCristiano Ronaldo could make a small piece of history tonight as he looks to score in his fifth consecutive El Clasico. If he does, he'll become only the second player to do so, after Ivan Zamarano.
8.58pmFull team news will be on site shortly.
8.55pmThe teams are out! The big news is that new Madrid signing Luka Modric does not get his first start for the club, but is named on the bench. Former Arsenal man Alex Song is also handed a spot on the bench for Barcelona, who name an unchanged side from their first leg victory.
8.52pmMeanwhile, Madrid have made a poor start to the season, drawing 1-1 with Valencia before losing 2-1 to Getafe this weekend.
8.52pmBarca opened up with a 5-1 win over Real Sociedad, following that up with a 2-1 win over Osasuna.
8.50pmRight, let's have a look at the two side's form going into this match.
8.44pmIf, for some reason, tonight's match doesn't take your fancy then we have two other live commentaries on the go at the moment. The Paralympic opening ceremony is being covered here, while we are also following the US Open here.
8.40pmUnsurprisingly, the focus is on the two best players in the world today, as Lionel Messi goes head to head with Cristiano Ronaldo once again. The two have had contrasting starts to the season, with Messi hitting five goals in his first three games, while Ronaldo's only goal of the season so far came in the first leg of this tie.
8.38pmHopefully tonight's match can live up to the first leg, which finished 3-2. You can read our match analysis of that match here.
8.36pmGood evening! The second El Clasico in the space of a week gets underway in just less than an hour, and promises to be an exciting affair!
Written by
Barney Corkhill
Barney Corkhill
