A stoppage-time own goal by Gerard Pique denied Barcelona the spoils in a 1-1 draw at Osasuna on Saturday as the champions saw their lead over Real Madrid cut to a single point.
Barca looked poised to win in Pamplona after Seydou Keita followed up his hat-trick against Real Zaragoza last weekend with a 73rd-minute strike, but with seconds left former Manchester United man Pique diverted a cross into his own net.
Barcelona now face a trip to Russia to take on Rubin Kazan in Wednesday’s Champions League match and will need no warning about a potential slip-up, having lost 2-1 to the Russians at Camp Nou in their last European match.
On the domestic front unbeaten Barca stay top, though, 10-men Real closed in with a 2-0 home win over Getafe courtesy of a brace from Gonzalo Higuain.
Sevilla stayed in touch with the leading duo by winning 2-0 at Xerez.
Recently-capped Spanish international Alvaro Negredo and Brazil striker Luis Fabiano were on target as Sevilla closed to within four points of Barca.
Elsewhere, new Atletico Madrid coach Quique Sanchez Flores got off to a losing start on his league bow falling 1-0 at Athletic Bilbao.
Highly rated Javi Martinez, 21, scored on 19 minutes to keep Atletico fourth from bottom and dent confidence further ahead of Tuesday’s vital Champions League home match against Chelsea.
It is a crunch week for Atletico, who need to beat Chelsea to have any chance of qualifying for the knockout phase and then prepare for a derby against Real Madrid at the Vicente Calderon.
Osasuna were the last team to beat Barcelona in the league, winning 1-0 at Camp Nou on the penultimate weekend of last season, and they stole a draw at the death when Pique haplessly put the ball past Valdes for a painful own goal.
Barca now turn their attention to the Champions League, while Real must focus on a testing Champions League trip to AC Milan tomorrow and then another derby against Atletico.
More than 180 years of horse racing came to an end in Singapore on Saturday, as the Singapore Turf Club hosted its final race day before its track is handed back to the Singaporean government to provide land for new homes. Under an overcast sky, the air-conditioned VIP boxes were full of enthusiasts, socialites and expats, while the grounds and betting halls below hosted mostly older-generation punters. The sun broke through for the last race, the last-ever Grand Singapore Gold Cup. The winner, South African jockey Muzi Yeni, echoed a feeling of loss shared by many on the day. “I’d
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LeBron James and eldest son Bronny James claimed a piece of NBA history on Sunday after making their long-awaited first appearance alongside each other for the Los Angeles Lakers. The duo appeared together at the start of the second quarter in the Lakers’ 118-114 preseason defeat to the Phoenix Suns in Palm Desert, east of Los Angeles. While LeBron James impressed with 19 points in just 16 minutes and 20 seconds on court before sitting out the second half, Bronny found the going harder with zero points in just over 13 minutes on court. The younger James attempted just one