Kounde clinches wild Copa del Rey for Barca
Jules Kounde's strike deep into extra-time saw Barcelona overcome Real Madrid 3-2 in a Copa del Rey final for the ages.
A Clasico of twists and turns was settled in Barca's favour as Hansi Flick's team kept its treble hopes alive.
Kounde was Barca's hero at Estadio La Cartuja in Seville as he drilled a powerful, low effort into the net from outside the box to put it back ahead in the 116th minute.
Madrid had earlier come from behind in normal time thanks to two goals in the space of seven minutes.
Kylian Mbappe, on as a half-time substitute, cancelled out Pedri's 28th-minute opener with a free-kick that clattered in off the left-hand upright, before Aurelien Tchouameni nodded home from Arda Guler's corner.
Barca hit back late on when Antonio Rudiger and Thibaut Courtois were caught out by a ball over the top, from which Ferran Torres coolly restored parity.
Referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea, who Madrid requested to be removed from officiating the match after he broke down in a pre-match news conference because of what he labelled as unfair treatment by the club's media channels, then pointed to the penalty spot when Raul Asencio lunged in on Raphinha in the final minute of stoppage-time.
However, after a video assistant referee (VAR) check, he instead overturned his decision, deeming Raphinha to have dived as the contact was insufficient.
With Madrid having lost Vinicius Junior to injury, Torres went close to putting Barca back in front in the first half of extra-time, but it was defender Kounde who stepped up to make the difference when he cut out Luka Modric's sloppy pass.
Tempers boiled over as full-time approached, with Rudiger, who had been taken off by Carlo Ancelotti, dismissed for reacting wildly to a decision to award Barcelona a free-kick.
From the resulting set-piece, Madrid's hopes were ended by the whistle, and Los Blancos, who also had Lucas Vazquez sent off after full-time, must now attempt to rally themselves for another Clasico, this time in what could be a LaLiga title decider on 12 May (AEST).
Barcelona won the Copa del Rey for a record-extending 32nd time, and despite Madrid's second-half resurgence, it was the worthy victor.
Flick's side has now lost only one of its past 28 matches across all competitions – a 3-1 reverse at the hands of Borussia Dortmund 16 April (AEST) in a UEFA Champions League it won anyway on aggregate.
It has recorded the joint-most wins across all competitions of any team in Europe's big five leagues in 2025, level with Paris Saint-Germain on 23.
It is also a third straight Clasico victory for Barca, which triumphed in the Supercopa de Espana final and LaLiga fixture earlier this season.
