Real Madrid reached the Copa del Rey final for the first time since 2014 as a Karim Benzema hat-trick and a Vinicius Junior strike earned a 4-0 Clasico victory over Barcelona at Camp Nou and a 4-1 triumph on aggregate.
Eder Militao’s own goal at the Bernabeu had Barca heading into Wednesday’s second leg with a 1-0 advantage, but Vinicius’ goal in first-half added time got Madrid back into the tie.
Carlo Ancelotti’s men then took over after the break, Benzema putting them ahead with a sublime finish before coolly converting from the spot after Vinicius was felled.
The reigning Ballon d’Or winner clinched his hat-trick late on to dump the 31-time winners out and set Madrid up to meet Osasuna in the showpiece match on May 6.
Barca started brightly with Sergi Roberto and Raphinha seeing early efforts foiled, though alert defending was needed by Ronald Araujo at the other end to deny Vinicius.
Tempers were starting to fray in a typically high-charged encounter, Xavi booked for dissent before Gavi and Vinicius were cautioned for a fracas in midfield. The visitors remained focused, though, to level the tie just before half-time.
After Courtois made a superb stop to deny Robert Lewandowski, Madrid flew up the other end, and though Jules Kounde initially blocked Vinicius’ shot, it crept over the line to make it 1-1 on aggregate.
Ancelotti’s side took the lead shortly after the break, Luka Modric teeing up Benzema to expertly stroke into the bottom-left corner.
Madrid then landed a killer blow shortly after, Franck Kessie bringing Vinicius down in the box for a penalty before Benzema stepped up and ruthlessly slotted into the bottom-right corner.
Benzema sealed his hat-trick with 10 minutes to play, delicately dinking over Marc-Andre ter Stegen to send his team cruising into the final.
Barcelona player ratings (4-3-3)
GK – Marc-Andre ter Stegen – 3/10 – Could do nothing about any of the goals and his distribution was terrible.
RB – Ronald Araujo – 4/10 – Usually has Vini’s number, but didn’t have it on Wednesday night.
CB – Jules Kounde – 3/10 – Sloppier than usual.
CB – Marcos Alonso – 2/10 – Not a centre-back and not a centre-back who had any hope of containing an in-form Benzema.
LB – Alejandro Balde – 6/10 – Barca’s best player from an attacking sense.
CM – Franck Kessie – 0/10 – In a word: hopeless. In two words: utterly hopeless.
CM – Sergio Busquets – 2/10 – Looked his age in the second half. The game passed him by.
CM – Sergi Roberto – 3/10 – Worked hard but he just doesn’t possess the quality that either Frenkie de Jong or Pedri do.
RW – Raphinha – 2/10 – Off his game.
ST – Robert Lewandowski – 4/10 – Forced Courtois into one fantastic save.
LW – Gavi – 4/10 – Up for the fight but didn’t show much quality on the ball.
SUB – Ansu Fati – N/A – You wouldn’t have known he came on.
SUB – Ferran Torres – N/A – See above.
SUB – Eric Garcia – N/A – See above, above.
Real Madrid player ratings (4-3-3)
GK – Thibaut Courtois – 6/10 – Made a stunning save which would lead to the opening goal.
RB – Dani Carvajal – 6/10 – His jaunts up the park in the second half made a huge difference for his side.
CB – Eder Militao – 7/10 – Dealt with Lewandowski well throughout.
CB – David Alaba – 6/10 – Real Madrid are a much better team when Alaba is at the heart of their defence.
LB – Eduardo Camavinga – 8/10 – A very good midfielder, sure, but at left-back Camavinga looks like a world-beater. Great showing again.
CM – Federico Valverde – 5/10 – The quietest of the midfield trio. Hasn’t been particularly great recently.
CM – Toni Kroos – 7/10 – Kept the ball ticking over well as he always does.
CM – Luka Modric – 8/10 – Quiet in the first half and then went full Luka Modric in the second. One of the greatest footballers we’ve ever seen.
RW – Rodrygo – 6/10 – Sparked a few dangerous counter-attacks.
ST – Karim Benzema – 10/10 – As always, he came up clutch. This time with an assist and two goals. He’s a ridiculous footballer.
LW – Vinicius Junior – 9/10 – Bagged home the opener at the end of the first half, won a penalty and an assist in the second.
SUB – Marco Asensio – 6/10.
SUB – Dani Ceballos – N/A.
SUB – Aurelien Tchouameni – N/A.
SUB – Nacho Fernandez – N/A.
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