INTERNATIONAL: Barcelona and Real Madrid finalized training preparations on Tuesday evening for their Spanish Super Cup semi-final in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Earlier, Real Madrid manager, Carlo Ancelotti, lavished praised on his Barcelona counterpart, Xavi.

Former Barca midfielder Xavi took over at the Nou Camp in November following the sacking of Ronald Koeman, but has struggled to turn the fortunes of the club around with the side placing sixth in LaLiga, 17 points behind leaders Real Madrid.

However, Ancelotti was impressed with what he had seen so far from the rookie coach and predicted a strong second half of the season from their arch rivals.

Athletic Bilbao are set to play against Atletico Madrid on Thursday (January 13) to fight it out for a spot in Sunday's final.

The Spanish soccer federation agreed to a three-year deal worth a reported $145 million dollars (120 million euros) with the Saudi sports authority in 2019 to expand the competition and play the game in the Middle East.

The Spanish Super Cup was staged in Saudi Arabia for the first time two years ago, with Real Madrid defeating Atletico in the final, while last year's edition was held in Spain due to the COVID-19 pandemic.