Frank Rijkaard's side, who face Manchester United in the Champions League semi-final first leg on Wednesday, dominated possession throughout, but missed a hatful of chances and now look out of the title race with five games still remaining.

Barca will find themselves 11 points off the pace if leaders Real Madrid beat Racing Santander on Sunday.

Sevilla's Champions League ambitions suffered a major blow after they were thrashed 4-1 at home by Almeria.

The visitors, who remain in contention for a UEFA Cup spot, went ahead when Dani Alves nodded into his own net after 24 minutes.

Alvaro Negredo, who earlier missed a penalty, made it 2-0 before efforts from Juanma Ortiz and Negredo stunned the Ramon-Sanchez Pizjuan.

Sevilla were down to 10 men by the time Negredo grabbed his second of the evening although they did end on a high when former Tottenham and West Ham striker Fredi Kanoute stabbed home from close range.

At the other end of the table, two early goals propelled Real Zaragoza out of the relegation zone at the expense of their opponents on Saturday as they beat Recreativo Huelva 3-0.