Birmingham beat Barça 3-2 on Penalties After 2-2 St. Andrew's Draw

Goalkeeper James Beadle saved two spot-kicks to ensure Birmingham beat Barça 3-2 in a penalty shootout following a 2-2 draw.

Birmingham City secured a 3-2 penalty shootout victory over Spanish champions Barcelona following a 2-2 draw at St. Andrew's on Friday. Goalkeeper James Beadle emerged as the decisive figure, saving spot-kicks from Roony Bardghji and Brian Fariñas, while Barça’s Jordi Pesquer struck the crossbar. The shootout sequence saw Scott Wright and Álvaro Cortés convert their opening attempts before Luis Vázquez and Bardghji missed for the visitors. Ethan Laird scored for the Blues, followed by a missed effort from Jack Robinson that was saved by Áron Yaakobishvili. After Guille Fernández leveled the tally, Patrick Roberts converted his attempt, allowing Beadle to seal the win by denying Fariñas.

August Priske opened the scoring for the English Championship side with a fine header assisted by an Alexander Cochrane cross, marking his fourth goal of the preseason. Barcelona responded through 18-year-old Egypt striker Hamza Abdelkarim, who won and converted a penalty to equalize before the halftime interval. Abdelkarim, who appeared four times for Egypt at the recent World Cup, put the Catalans ahead in the second half by scoring from close range after Beadle parried a strike from Bardghji. Jhon Solís, the former Girona midfielder, restored parity in the 68th minute by turning home a ball knocked into his path by Christoph Klarer following a free kick.

Bellingham Returns to St. Andrew's

Real Madrid and England midfielder Jude Bellingham attended the match at his former club, joining celebrations from the stands while wearing a Birmingham City shirt. The hometown star was observing the fixture during his time off following the World Cup. His presence coincided with a match where Birmingham nearly won in regulation time, as Cochrane hit the bar late in the game. Beadle was required to make a late double save against Bardghji and Álex González to maintain the 2-2 scoreline until the final whistle.

Barcelona Roster Depleted by World Cup

Coach Hansi Flick fielded an inexperienced side at St. George's Park following a week of training, as the bulk of his squad remained absent due to World Cup commitments. The Spanish champions were without all eight of their Spain internationals who won the trophy in North America. Additional absences included Anthony Gordon, Jules Koundé, and Raphinha. Despite these omissions, summer signing Karim Adeyemi made his debut for the club. The match served as a platform for Abdelkarim to audition for a permanent role following the departure of Robert Lewandowski to the Chicago Fire this summer.

Upcoming Fixtures and Season Starts

This victory concluded Birmingham City's preseason schedule ahead of their opening competitive fixture, a Carabao Cup tie against Swansea City scheduled for August 8. Barcelona will continue their preparations by facing Premier League club Nottingham Forest on the same date. The Catalans are scheduled to begin the defense of their LaLiga crown on August 23 with an away match at Elche. Wojciech Szczesny also featured in the match for Barça, notably making a fine save to deny Tomoki Iwata before the second-half goals shifted the momentum toward the eventual shootout.