Barcelona were unable to break down a determined Real Betis defence and were held to a 1-1 draw in La Liga on Saturday. However, they still managed to increase their lead over Real Madrid, who conceded in added time to suffer a 2-1 home defeat to Valencia. The result saw Barcelona move four points clear at the top of the table.

Both Spanish giants are set for midweek Champions League first-leg ties. Real Madrid travel to Arsenal on Tuesday, while Barcelona face Borussia Dortmund away the following evening.

Barcelona made a bright start, carving open the Betis defence in the seventh minute. Gavi calmly slotted the ball past goalkeeper Adrián from inside the six-yard box to give the hosts the lead.

However, Betis responded just nine minutes later when centre-back Natan Souza lost his marker to head home a Giovani Lo Celso corner.

Despite dominating the second half, Barcelona were repeatedly denied by a combination of resilient defending, excellent goalkeeping from Adrián, and a series of narrow misses. The Catalans were unable to find a winner, and with Betis playing for time, they settled for a draw that still strengthened their position at the top.

“We would have liked to win to go even further ahead, but that’s football,” Gavi told Movistar. “The draw leaves a bitter taste because we couldn’t capitalise on our chances.”

The point lifted Betis into fifth place.

"Plenty of Chances"

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti admitted that the La Liga title race had become more difficult, but insisted his side would fight until the final match.

“La Liga is more complicated now, but we must keep battling until the last game,” said Ancelotti. “They didn’t need to do much to score twice. We took risks towards the end and were caught on the counter-attack.”

He added, “It wasn’t a deserved defeat. We created plenty of chances but lacked a bit of sharpness in front of goal.”

The win took Valencia to 15th place in the table, seven points above the relegation zone.

Real had an early opportunity to seize control when César Tárrega was adjudged to have fouled Kylian Mbappé in the penalty area. However, Giorgi Mamardashvili saved a tame spot-kick from Vinícius Júnior – the Brazilian’s second consecutive miss from the spot after his failed attempt against Atlético Madrid in the Champions League.

Almost immediately, Valencia broke forward and won a corner. Mouctar Diakhaby rose above Antonio Rüdiger to power home a header.

Real equalised five minutes after the break when Vinícius tapped in during a goalmouth scramble from a corner. It was his 104th goal for Los Blancos, equalling the tally of his Brazilian compatriot, Ronaldo.

Despite a lacklustre team display, Mbappé managed to create several clear chances but failed to convert in the 36th, 37th, 48th, 49th, and 68th minutes.

Mamardashvili produced a superb performance between the posts, keeping Valencia in the contest until Hugo Duro secured the win deep into injury time with a composed finish following a swift counter-attack, assisted by Rafa Mir.

Due to injuries to Thibaut Courtois and Andriy Lunin, Ancelotti named third-choice goalkeeper Fran González in the starting line-up. Lunin was fit enough to make the bench but did not feature.

Looking ahead, Ancelotti must also prepare for the Copa del Rey final against Barcelona on 26 April in Seville.

“The match against Barça in the Copa del Rey will be a different challenge. They’ll attack more, and we’ll need to be solid defensively and clinical in attack,” said the Italian tactician.