At a difficult ground against a resilient opposition, Barcelona just did enough at Balaidos to keep their unbeaten run going, with a 2-2 draw against Celta Vigo.
Goals from Ousmane Dembélé and Paco Alcacer clinched a point with ten men, despite a Jonathan Castro equaliser and an Iago Aspas deflection which hit his hand.
Barcelona started on the front foot and it didn't take long for the first big chance of the game. Linking up well with Philippe Coutinho, Denis Suarez missed an easy opportunity with the goal gaping. Teed up by the Brazilian playmaker, the former Manchester City starlet dragged his shot wide in a dominant start for the visitors.
Celta Vigo immediately fired back with the exuberant crowd behind them, as La Liga's leading Spanish marksman Iago Aspas stung the gloves of Marc-André ter Stegen, carving open the Barcelona defence with ease. With the goal at his mercy, the ex-Liverpool man wasted a golden opportunity to take the lead in a thrilling end-to-end start.
Without talisman Lionel Messi and the pressing of Luis Suarez, Celta Vigo had a free reign to take control of the match, with Danish duo Daniel Wass and Pione Sisto pulling the strings in midfield.
They say the top sides punish you when you fail to make your chances pay, and the league leaders did just that to take the lead. After a poor pass by defender Jonathan Castro, Coutinho took full advantage to tee up French star Dembélé, whose sumptuous left foot volley fizzed into the back of the net.
With an almost instant reply, Castro made amends for his earlier mistake by getting on the score sheet with the final kick of the half. Breaking up the play in midfield, Celta Vigo attacked the lacklustre Barcelona defence at pace as Maximiliano Gómez got to the byline. Firing a fantastic ball across the six yard box, an unmarked Castro had the simple task of a tap-in.
Barcelona's best chance of the half against the run of play came from an unlikely source. A fantastic corner whipped in to the back post was thumped against the woodwork by Paulinho, rising high to head a shot, which easily beat goalkeeper Sergio Alvarez, routed to the spot.
With the visitors committing men forward, Celta Vigo countered excellently as Brais Mendez led the charge. In a five-on-three situation, Los Celestes couldn't capatilise with Mendez missing a simple finish, bending his shot past the post.
Sensing blood, the cultured left foot of Mendez again tested ter Stegen, forcing an accomplished save from the German international, whose fingertips kept out a promising start to the match for the mid-table La Liga side, in ninth place before the match began.
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