The Barça goalkeeper, ecstatic after winning his second title with the club he returned for.
With the Copa del Rey final against Real Madrid, Wojciech Szczesny completed his 26th match for FC Barcelona, after coming out of retirement following Ter Stegen’s serious injury and answering the club’s call shortly after announcing his decision to retire from professional football. Although he conceded two goals this Saturday, April 26, in the Copa del Rey final against Real Madrid, Barça scored three, meaning the 35-year-old former Polish international will have fond memories of this night in Seville, which marked Barça’s 32nd Copa del Rey title. For Szczesny, it’s his second trophy with Barça — the first came against Real Madrid as well, in the January Supercopa in Saudi Arabia. On that occasion, he was sent off in the second half, though Barça still crushed Madrid 5–2.
With Ter Stegen back on the bench after recovering from his injury, Szczesny received congratulations from the captain on the La Cartuja pitch. Despite early doubts among Barça fans about signing a goalkeeper in October who had already decided to retire, Szczesny’s numbers have been almost flawless: in the 26 matches he played, Barça lost only once — a 3–1 defeat in Dortmund in the Champions League quarterfinals second leg, which didn’t affect qualification since Barça had won 4–0 at home. His record stands at 22 wins, 3 draws, and 1 loss, with 13 clean sheets and just 26 goals conceded.
Although he was beaten by a well-taken free kick from Kylian Mbappé and a header from Aurélien Tchouaméni in the second half, Szczesny made several crucial saves and intercepted key through balls behind Barça’s defense. OPTA stats confirmed he won 5 possessions, showing strong control of space and positioning, even when Barça played far from his goal. Most importantly, he made 5 important saves when Real Madrid pressed hard in the second half.
In a system like Barça’s, Szczesny’s role in build-up play was key: out of 45 actions during the match, 34 were passes during build-up, with 31 of them successful, yielding a 91.2% pass accuracy. Already a three-time Coppa Italia winner with Juventus, lifting a Copa del Rey trophy with Barça against Real Madrid was an unforgettable achievement for someone who, given his veteran status, doesn’t often get to experience new emotions on the football field.
Meanwhile, Thibaut Courtois, usually the hero of finals, was more exposed this time than his opposite number. Although the Belgian international made six saves, he conceded three goals and struggled with his distribution — out of 33 passes, only 18 were successful, giving him a 54.5% pass accuracy.