Barcelona and Athletic Club played out a frustrating 0-0 draw, missing an opportunity for Barça to close the gap on LaLiga leaders Real Madrid. With Real dropping points earlier, Barça hoped for a win to narrow the gap and overtake Girona in the standings. However, the stalemate leaves them trailing Real by eight points and still one point behind Girona.
Barça’s frustration was compounded by two injury blows as midfielders Frenkie de Jong and Pedri were forced off in the first half. De Jong suffered an ankle injury, while Pedri seemed to have a leg issue, adding to Barça’s injury concerns.
Despite a promising effort from Joao Cancelo, whose long-range shot was cleared off the line, neither team managed to break the deadlock. Athletic Club, buoyed by recent success, pressed forward in the second half but found little success against Barça’s solid defense.
The draw leaves Athletic in fifth place, five points behind fourth-placed Atletico Madrid, while Barça faces concerns over their midfield injuries and a challenging upcoming fixture against Mallorca without the suspended Ronald Araujo.
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