The champions of Spain and Italy fared poorly in the respective curtain-raisers to the La Liga and Serie A seasons, as both Real Madrid and Inter Milan fell to domestic cup winners Sevilla and AS Roma.
At the Santiago Bernabeu, last season's Spanish cup winner Sevilla routed league champ Real Madrid 5-3 in Madrid to lift its second Supercup in two years, thanks to a hat trick from last season's top scorer Frederic Kanoute. That's now the sixth trophy for the Andalusian club in the last two years. Before it won another Supercup, a European Supercup, the UEFA Cup (twice) and a Copa Del Rey (Spanish Cup). The club has a chance at yet another trophy when it faces AC Milan in the European Supercup on Aug. 31. Fans were already calling for the axing of coach Bernd Schuster following the 6-3 aggregate loss. Interestingly, Daniel Alves, the sought-after Sevilla right back who sat out the first leg last weekend due to speculation about his future, played a significant part in the match, assisting one of Kanoute's three goals.
Italy's Super Cup saw Coppa Italia champion AS Roma squeak by champion Inter Milan, 1-0, thanks to a Daniele De Rossi penalty after Nicolas Burdisso brought down captain Francesco Totti in the area 15 minutes from time. The win "is a great satisfaction for us and for our fans," Roma coach Luciano Spalletti said after the match. "Only those who have been at Roma can understand." Roma finished a distant second to Inter in Serie A last season, despite thumping the Italian champion in the Coppa Italia final.
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