Barcelona 1 - Numancia 1

Barcelona: Arnau; Puyol, Frank De Boer, Petit; Xavi, Cocu (Sergi 85'); Simao, Gerard (De La Peña 65'), Luis Enrique, Sergi; Rivaldo, Alfonso (Dani 72'). 3-2-3-2.
Numancia: Alvaro Nuñez; Manel, Jaume (Pacheta 43'), Muñiz, Soria, David Pirri (Clavero 50'); Iñaki, José Manuel, Nagore; Marini (Rosu 68'), Rubén Navarro. 5-3-2.

Team changes: Barça: Arnau, Frank De Boer, Petit, Gerard, Alfonso for Dutruel, Abelardo, Reiziger, Sergi, Dani / Numancia: Manel, Soria, David Pirri, José Manuel, Rubén Navarro for Gustavo, Clavero, Pacheta, Chispa Delgado, Ojeda.

Goals:
1-0. 47. Rivaldo (penalty). After Pirri ruled to have fouled Alfonso.
2-0. 90. Rubén Navarro. Followed up after Arnau pushed out Pacheta's free kick.

Another disappointing game for Barcelona, and their fans are starting to despair of winning anything this season. Their manager Serra Ferrer decided to ring in the changes after their defeat in Mallorca, leaving out the two 'culprits' for their defeat at the weekend, Dutruel and Sergi. Arnau came in to the goal, and Gerard started in midfield, with Luis Enrique moving out to the left wing. Reiziger was out with flu and Abelardo and Dani were rested, so back came Petit, De Boer and Alfonso. Numancia brought back their three recent signings from Deportivo, Manel, Pirri and José Manuel, with Rubén Navarro returning to his native Cataluña up front after missing a game through injury.

Most of the first half was dominated by the home team, with Simao constantly a threat from the right. Referee Prados García missed a clear penalty by Soria on Rivaldo with ten minutes gone, but he was to make up for it later when he awarded one to Alfonso for what appeared a fair challenge by Pirri early in the second half. He also stopped Gerard in his tracks with only the keeper to beat for a positional offside against Alfonso, who was walking backwards at the time. Just before half time, Jaume was stretchered off with what looked like a serious knee injury after clashing with Gerard, but in the end it turned out to be a deep cut but nothing serious.

Rivaldo's penalty goal just after the break should have sparked Barcelona off, but it was more of the same in the second half, with Xavi hitting the crossbar with a free kick and Nuñez saving his side on a couple of occasions. Numancia started to gain confidence, and the inevitable happened, with Rubén Navarro striking in the last minute to steal away a point. Handkerchiefs all round, and Barcelona are once again in crisis, although with Celta and Rayo both losing they actually rise up two places to fifth. Serra Ferrer probably only has two games left to get it right, with a trip to Las Palmas at the weekend followed by that vital Champions League game against Besiktas. Kluivert could be back for that one, but not Overmars and certainly not Zenden, who will be operated on in the near future for his knee injury. Numancia's point keeps them out of the relegation zone, but they receive the visit of Real Madrid at the weekend. It's tough at the top.