Barcelona Draws 2-2 with Birmingham, Loses on Penalties in Friendly Match

Barcelona continued their preparations for the 2026/27 season with a friendly match against Birmingham on Friday evening, which ended in a 2-2 draw before Birmingham won 3-2 in the penalty shootout. The match featured 17-year-old Israeli midfielder Orian Goren, who came on as a substitute in the 63rd minute. The game was played at a slow pace, with Birmingham taking the lead in the 32nd minute through a precise header by August Priska. Barcelona equalized in the 41st minute when Hamza Abd El Karim was fouled in the box and converted the penalty. Abd El Karim scored again in the 60th minute after capitalizing on a rebound.

Goren replaced Marc Casado in the 63rd minute and contributed with one shot on goal, which was blocked, and completed 11 passes with 100% accuracy, including a key pass. Despite his previous success with penalty kicks, Goren did not participate in the shootout, which Barcelona lost. Birmingham equalized again in the 69th minute through John Solis, who scored from close range after a set-piece delivery.

Barcelona's starting lineup included Wojciech Szczesny, Hugo Espert, Andreas Christensen, Gerard Martin, Jofra Torrents, Marc Bernal, Marc Casado, Avirama Tonkara, Karim Ademi, Sha'na Kleibert, and Hamza Abd El Karim. Birmingham fielded James Bidela, Bright Ossei Samuel, Phil Newman, Christoph Klarer, Alexander Kocherain, Tomoki Iwata, John Solis, Carlos Vicente, Jai Stansfield, Kanya Fujimoto, and August Priska. The match served as part of Barcelona's ongoing preseason preparations ahead of the upcoming season.