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Barcelona needed penalties to see off Real Sociedad in the first semifinal of the 2020-21 Spanish Super Cup.
The tournament was initially scheduled to take place in Saudi Arabia, but travel restrictions owing to the COVID-19 pandemic meant the Spanish authorities had to find a different venue.
The Estadio Nuevo Arcangel in Cordoba was chosen as the venue for the clash between Barcelona and Real Sociedad, while Real Madrid will trade tackles with Athletic Bilbao at the Rosaleda in Malaga.
Poor weather conditions in Spain saw both sides undergo logistical nightmares to make it to their venue, but they shrugged that off to put out what was a true spectacle.
The big news in the buildup to the clash was the absence of Barcelona skipper Lionel Messi, who was left out of the team list entirely. The Argentina international had signalled to the bench that he wanted to be taken off in Barcelona's last clash against Granada, so his absence might have been related to that.
Beyond the absence of Messi, Ronald Koeman made two other changes from the Barcelona side that recorded the convincing victory in Andalusia. Ronald Araujo and Clement Lenglet came into the defence at the expense of Sergino Dest and Samuel Umtiti.
The Blaugrana have been on a fine run of form of late and started the game on the front foot, forcing Sociedad deeper into their half, although the Basque outfit showed little attacking intent.
Barcelona fashioned several chances in the opening minutes, and it came as no surprise when they went ahead through Frenkie de Jong in the 39th minute.
Antoine Griezmann found himself in space on the left flank, and the France international delivered a teasing cross into the box which de Jong finished with a looping header to put Barcelona in front.
That sparked La Real into life, and they fashioned two good chances right before the break.
They equalised five minutes into the second half when Frenkie de Jong was adjudged to have handled in the area, and the VAR upheld the referee's decision.
Sociedad captain Mikel Oyarzabal stepped up and made no mistake from the spot, sending Ter Stegen the wrong way to restore parity.
Both sides fashioned several chances in the remainder of the game in an entertaining end-to-end clash, but neither side could get the all-important second goal to avoid extra-time.
It was more of the same in the extra period, with Antoine Griezmann forcing a great point-blank save off Alex Remiro, while Adnan Januzaj hit the post from a 20-yard free-kick.
Eventually, penalties were required to separate the sides, and Barcelona narrowly edged out the White and Blue 3-2 to secure their place in the final next weekend.
Barcelona will face the winner of the other semi-final between Real Madrid and Athletic Bilbao on Thursday. On that note, let us have a look at the five talking points from the game.
#5 Barcelona get an opportunity to start the year by winning a trophy
The year 2020 was one to forget for Barcelona, as they ended it on a trophyless note, the first time they did so since 2008.
However, the Blaugrana got an opportunity to participate in the expanded Super Cup by virtue of their second-place finish in the La Liga last season.
Their narrow victory over Real Sociedad offers them an opportunity to end their 20-month wait for a trophy on Sunday.
#4 Penalty shootout misery for Real Sociedad
It is an oft-repeated saying that a penalty shootout is a lottery, but there was nothing excusable about the poor start Sociedad made in the shootout.
In what was a shocking start, La Real missed their first three spot-kicks, with Jon Bautista, Oyazarbal and Willian Jose all missing before Januzaj and Mikel Merino found success,
Incidentally, Bautista was brought on for Joseba Zaldua ostensibly for his ability from the spot, but the 25-year-old set a poor precedent for others to follow.
Up next stepped captain Oyarzabal to take advantage of Frenkie de Jong's miss, with the 23-year-old's record from the spot a heartening one.
His second-half penalty meant he had scored his last 15 penalties in all competitions, which is more than what any other La Liga player had managed since 2015-16.
However, Ter Stegen dived low to his right to deny Oyarzabal.
Willian Jose hit the post next after Ousmane Dembele had scored, but in remarkable scenes, Griezmann blazed over when he had the chance to win it for Barcelona.
Even though Real Sociedad converted their last two penalties, the damage had already been done, and they can only blame themselves for their missed opportunity.
#3 Barcelona almost missed Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi has been in fine form for Barcelona since the start of the year, scoring four goals and scored and providing an assist in his last three games.
He, however, missed this clash with what appeared to be a knock, but despite his absence, Barcelona still did enough to progress to the final.
Barcelona were good value for their victory, but Real Sociedad fashioned enough chances both in normal time and extra time to win this clash.
Even though Barcelona progressed to the final without their talisman, Lionel Messi is expected to be fit in time for the final.
#2 Marc-Andre ter Stegen's heroics win the game for Barcelona
Marc-Andre ter Stegen put out one of his best performances in recent memory to help Barcelona reach the final.
The Germany international stood tall to deny Alexander Isak from point-blank range in the early exchanges of the game, and that set the tone for the rest of the clash.
He made a series of routine saves in normal time, but it was in extra time and the penalty shootout where he really stood up to be counted.
The former Borussia Monchengladbach man produced a stunning one-handed save to tip over a ferocious shot by Joseba Zaldua and saved from Oyarzabal after a counterattack had caught Barcelona cold.
Another lightning break saw Adnan Januzaj run half the length of the field before seeing a well-placed shot saved by Ter Stegen in the 115th minute.
Just three minutes later, the former Manchester United man stood over a free kick from 20 yards. However, Januzaj saw his well-struck left-footed effort rattle the post although replays showed the Barcelona keeper might have gotten a fingertip to the ball.
It was more of the same for Ter Stegen in the penalty shootout, as he handed Barcelona the advantage by saving Sociedad's first two penalties before pushing Willian Jose's effort onto the post.
#1 Confident Riqui Puig sends his boyhood club to the final
Riqui Puig has shown enough brilliance over the last year, leading many fans to clamour for his increased inclusion in the Barcelona first team.
However, Ronald Koeman has been adamant that the midfielder does not feature in his plans and suggested a loan transfer for the player for more playing time.
Against Sociedad, the Barcelona manager introduced Puig at the start of extra-time in place of Sergio Busquets, but the 21-year-old made the most of his 30 minutes on the field.
He shone brightly and took two shots while he completed three dribbles and had a remarkable passing accuracy of 92.3%.
Puig's most significant act in the game though, came in the penalty shootout, where he stepped up to take the decisive penalty to send his boyhood club to the final.
Before him, Frenkie de Jong and Antoine Griezmann had missed from 12 yards, but Puig produced a well-taken penalty in what could be a marker of his readiness for the Barcelona first team.
