Real Madrid pay heavy price for Copa del Rey defeat

Real Madrid will pay a heavy price in injuries and suspensions following Saturday night's dramatic 3-2 defeat to FC Barcelona in the final of the Copa del Rey.

Jules Kounde's goal in the 116th minute gave Barca their third win over Madrid in three meetings this season, and while Real Madrid gave their best performance against the club's eternal rivals, that will be scant consolation following a long night in Seville.

Dani Olmo (L) of FC Barcelona vies with Aurelien Tchouameni of Real Madrid during the Copa del Rey football match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid, in La Cartuja Stadium, Seville, Spain, on April 26, 2025. (Photo by Pablo Morano/Xinhua)

The final ended in controversy and there were ugly scenes with several Real Madrid players losing control after referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea awarded a free kick to Barcelona in the closing seconds, with Jude Bellingham, Lucas Vazquez and Antonio Rudiger all shown red cards for their vociferous protests.

Bellingham and Vazquez can expect bans of either one or two games, which they will serve in next season's Copa del Rey (although Vazquez is likely to have left Madrid by then).

However, Rudiger faces a much tougher suspension after the German hurled a bag of ice at the referee and needed to be held back by team-mates and members of the Real Madrid technical staff, and although he apologized for his behavior on Sunday, saying there was "No excuse," for his actions, he faces a ban of between 4-12 matches.

That ban will be served in Madrid's next games in all competitions, which means he probably won't play again this season and will miss Real Madrid's La Liga visit to Barcelona on May 11th, which could decide this season's La Liga title.

That ban could be irrelevant after Rudiger was substituted in the closing minutes of the final with a knee problem after the Real Madrid medical staff applied strapping in the 78th minute, following Aurelien Tchouameni's headed goal, which had given Madrid a second half lead.

Rudiger is not the only casualty, with left back Ferland Mendy suffering a thigh injury that saw him replaced after just 10 minutes and the Frenchman could also have said 'goodbye' to the season.

Dani Ceballos also had to go off with pain in his ankle and could be a doubt for next weekend's vital league game at home to Celta Vigo.

There is better news regarding Vinicius Jr, who had to be helped out of the game in the 89th minute after an apparent muscle problem left him unable to continue. It looked as if he had suffered a tear or a strain, but early tests showed the winger was suffering muscle fatigue rather than an injury.