Barca scrape late draw with Granada as fans stay away

LLUIS GENE / AFP

Barcelona limped to a 1-1 draw at home to lowly Granada in LaLiga, needing defender Ronald Araujo's last-minute header to rescue a point.

With only 27,000 out of a possible 40,000 fans inside the ground, those in attendance were stunned into silence after 85 seconds as Domingos Duarte rose at the back post to head in Sergio Escudero's centre.

Sergi Roberto struck the post with a volley midway through the first half as Barca huffed and puffed to get back into the game.

Araujo forced Luis Maximiano into a full-length stop on the stroke of halftime as the Catalans resorted to hoofing the ball into the box, racking up 54 crosses in total during the 90 minutes.

Coach Ronald Koeman introduced striker Luuk de Jong at the break to act as target man and he was joined up top by centre-half Gerard Pique 15 minutes from time as the hosts grew increasingly desperate.

De Jong somehow contrived to miss from close range as it appeared it was going to be another frustrating night for Barca.

However, Araujo's header rescued a point in the final minute of normal time from 17-year-old substitute Gavi's cross.

The result leaves Barca in seventh place on eight points from four matches, five behind leaders Real Madrid who have played a game more.

"They (Granada) wasted time from as soon as they scored," bemoaned Koeman. "There wasn't a lot of space to play short, delicate balls as they defended with every man back.

"There was space on the wings to cross, and we had tall players in there and that's what we did. At least we managed to get a draw, even if we have dropped two points."

Granada, meanwhile, remains without a win and is in 17th spot on three points from five matches.

More from Sports News

  • Modric joins Milan in one-year deal

    Croatia captain Luka Modric, who left Real Madrid after 13 years at the LaLiga club, has completed his move to AC Milan on a one-year deal with an option to extend until June 2027, the Serie A side said on Monday.

  • England win dramatic Lord's test by 22 runs

    England beat India by 22 runs on a final day of simmering tension and high drama in the third test at Lord's on Monday to move 2-1 up in the series.

  • LA28 unveils Olympic competition schedule

    Organisers of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics on Monday released the first look at the Olympic competition schedule, highlighting a historic reshuffling of key events and the most ambitious sports lineup in Games history.

  • England move closer to victory at Lord's

    England claimed four wickets to close on a famous win with India struggling on 112-8, still 80 runs behind the hosts at lunch on a tense final day of an enthralling third Test at Lord's on Monday.

  • Palmer double fires Chelsea past PSG to Club World Cup glory

    Cole Palmer produced a scintillating first-half masterclass as Chelsea demolished a flat Paris St Germain 3-0 to win a one-sided Club World Cup final at New Jersey's MetLife Stadium on Sunday.

News