Barcelona had the tie; Real Sociedad took the ending

Barcelona controlled the ball, the territory and, for most of the evening, the tie. Real Sociedad controlled the ending.

David Ochoa put Barcelona ahead after 28 minutes at Camp Nou, reacting first when a dangerous ball across the six-yard area reached him. With the aggregate advantage restored, the home side had the match where they wanted it. They finished with 65 per cent possession, completed 600 passes, created three clear-cut chances and struck the woodwork.

The second goal never came.

That failure became more expensive with every passing minute because Sociedad continued to carry threat through their limited possession. Six of their eight shots were on target. They did not require long spells around Barcelona’s area; they required accuracy when the spaces finally appeared.

In the 87th minute, David Ruiz accelerated a move through the centre, José Luis increased the tempo with a first-time pass and Manuel Cabezuelo broke into the left side of the penalty area. His finish from a difficult angle levelled the night. In the fifth minute of stoppage time, Sociedad attacked again down the right and a far-post header made it 2–1, drawing the aggregate score to 2–2.

Barcelona had spent the evening protecting an advantage. In eight minutes, they lost both the match and the emotional command of the tie.

Extra time passed without another goal. The shootout then sharpened the contrast. Barcelona converted four penalties but missed one; Sociedad scored all five. The visitors advanced 5–4 from the spot.

There is a temptation after such an ending to treat possession as self-deception. That would be too simple. Barcelona’s control was real, and so were their chances. The failure lay not in having the ball but in leaving Sociedad close enough for one efficient sequence to alter the night. Knockout football punishes incomplete authority.

Sociedad’s achievement carries beyond one dramatic semi-final. The latest imported Second Division table places them level with Leonesa on 56 points while having played two fewer matches. Their season therefore contains two simultaneous demands: a promotion campaign requiring repetition and a cup run rewarding nerve.

At Camp Nou, they showed the second quality in its purest form. Cabezuelo’s late finish did not end the tie. It reopened it. The stoppage-time goal forced extra time. Five perfect penalties completed the work.

Barcelona will remember the chances, the woodwork and the long periods in which the evening appeared under control. Sociedad will remember something more useful: the moment the clock became an ally rather than a threat.