Real Madrid advanced to the final of the 2024-2025 King’s Cup or Copa del Rey after holding Real Sociedad to a 4-4 draw in the second leg of the semi-final, which Madrid won 5-4 on aggregate, at the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid on Wednesday morning IST.
Real Madrid centre-back Antonio Rudiger scored the equaliser in the 115th minute of the match. Real Madrid will face Barcelona or Atletico Madrid in the final.
Real Sociedad, who lost the first leg 1-0, took the lead in the 16th minute through Ander Barrenetzea. Barrenetxea beat Lucas Vazquez to Pablo Marin’s through ball and slotted home the equaliser.
Endrick, the only goalscorer in the first leg, threatened the visitors’ goal on several occasions. He finally broke the deadlock at 1-1, and his chipped shot put Real 2-1 ahead on aggregate.
Before the break, Real Sociedad claimed a penalty when Takfusa Kubo was brought down in the box by Vinicius. But the referee waved away the spot-kick.
In the second half, Real coach Carlo Ancelotti brought on Kylian Mbappe to replace Endrick. But it was Real Sociedad who scored again, this time in the 72nd minute when David Alaba scored an own goal after Pablo Marin’s shot deflected off him and past goalkeeper Andriy Lunin.
The visitors doubled their lead in the 80th minute when Mikel Oyarzabal’s deflected shot beat Lunin.
The two-goal deficit prompted an aggressive response from Real. Vinicius beat his marker and crossed for Jude Bellingham to tap home in the 82nd minute.
In the 86th minute, it was Aurelien Tchouameni’s turn to get his name on the scoreboard when his header was poorly parried by Real Sociedad goalkeeper Alex Remiro.
Oyarzabal scored his second goal in the 90th minute, converting Sergio Gomez’s free-kick to force extra time.
Rudiger then became Real’s hero in the final minute of added time when his header from Arda Guler’s corner beat Remiro to send Los Blancos into the final.
Atletico Madrid host Barcelona in the second leg of the other semi-final on Thursday (3/4), IST. The teams played out a 4-4 draw in the first leg.
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