Barcelona throws away two-goal

Barcelona stretched their La Liga lead to nine  points, despite throwing away a two-goal  advantage at Villarreal.

Barca moved ahead when Ivan Rakitic fired a low shot past several home defenders, pouncing on a loose ball after Lionel Messi's free-kick.

Neymar calmly converted a controversial penalty after he was adjudged to be fouled by home keeper Sergio Asenjo.

But fourth-placed Villarreal fought back through Cedric Bakambu's neat finish and Jeremy Mathieu's own goal.

Relive all the drama from El Madrigal  

Barca, who saw nearest rivals Atletico Madrid suffer a shock loss at Sporting Gijon on Saturday, had to settle for a point as they extended their Spanish record unbeaten run to 39 matches in all competitions.

The Catalan side are 10 points ahead of third-placed Real Madrid, who thrashed Sevilla 4-0 later on Sunday.

Villarreal look unlikely to pip Madrid to an automatic Champions League place, but are well equipped to reach the competition's qualifying round after a deserved point against the reigning champions.

They are 12 points adrift of Zinedine Zidane's side, but have a six-point cushion over fifth-placed Celta Vigo.

Both home goals came after Barca boss Luis Enrique reshuffled his defence with the introduction of Mathieu, who replaced the booked Gerard Pique, and right-back Dani Alves.

The visitors appeared vulnerable to further punishment, but regained their composure to see out the final half hour.

However, there were few chances for either side to nick an action-packed game, which saw referee Jose Sanchez infuriate the home crowd with a series of bizarre decisions.