Barcelona held by Real Betis but extend La Liga advantage to four points

Barcelona have extended their unbeaten start to 2025, but their nine-match winning run in La Liga is over as they have drawn 1-1 against Real Betis at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys.

This season, Barcelona have had a knack of scoring early goals, and they got another in this match as they struck the opener inside seven minutes. It was a nice moment for Gavi as he found the back of the net against his former club after being played in by Ferran Torres, and in doing so, he scored his first La Liga goal of the season.

However, Barcelona were only able to stay in front for 10 minutes, as Betis found a relatively quick equaliser. It was a corner from Giovani Lo Celso that was met by Natan, and the Brazilian defender bulleted a header into the back of the net, leaving Wojciech Szczesny with no chance of making a save.

Barcelona came close to scoring a second when Pedri was denied by Adrian San Miguel, who had a very busy evening in the Betis goal. He and his defence were able to see out the remainder of the first half, and although the hosts started to pile on the pressure in the second period, they were able to hold on then too as Hansi Flick withdrew the likes of Pedri and Alejandro Balde with Wednesday’s Champions League quarter-final first leg against Borussia Dortmund in mind.

The result means that Barcelona are now four points clear of Real Madrid, who lost to Valencia earlier in the day. A point for Betis sees them move ahead of Villarreal into fifth in the standings, albeit the Yellow Submarine – who take on Athletic Club at La Ceramica on Sunday – have played two matches less.