Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez Score as Barcelona Held to Draw by Celta Vigo

Celta Vigo went toe to toe with Barcelona at the Camp Nou on Saturday as the two sides played out an absorbing 2-2 draw.

Celta took a surprise lead through Iago Aspas, although Barcelona hit back immediately with an emphatic finish by Lionel Messi. On 62 minutes, Luis Suarez had the hosts in front when he capped a flowing move, but Maxi Gomez got Celta back on terms with an equaliser eight minutes later.

The draw gave Valencia the chance to cut Barcelona's lead at the top to two points on Sunday, when they take on Getafe.

From the off it was evident Celta weren't going to sit deep to try to stifle Barcelona. And after 20 minutes, they got the reward their bright start deserved, as Aspas pounced in the penalty area to tuck home a loose ball.

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As relayed by Barcelona correspondent Samuel Marsden, in the buildup Marc-Andre ter Stegen made a stunning save to deny Maxi Gomez:

The goal appeared to awaken Barcelona, who poured forward after conceding.

On the edge of the box, Suarez exchanged passes with Paulinho before the latter played in Messi in the left channel. From there, the forward finished with conviction through the legs of Ruben Blanco.

Marca's Jason Pettigrove noted Messi was closing in on yet another impressive landmark in his career with this strike:

Barcelona then took control of the contest. Suarez had a goal wrongly disallowed for offside after a Messi pass before the latter found space again in the box but could only hit the post from a tight angle.

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Celta started to carry more of a threat on the counter before the interval and hung on until half-time.

In the second half, there was a composure about Barcelona as they sought the go-ahead goal, with Celta sitting deep and beginning to look a little ragged. Just after the hour mark, the Blaugrana finally put one of their passing patterns together to go 2-1 up.

Messi fed Jordi Alba down the left flank with a wonderful pass, and the left-back teed up Suarez, who couldn't miss from close range. As noted by Bleacher Report's Karl Matchett, while the striker has been a long way short of his best this term, he's still grabbing goals:

Barca could've killed the game off, but Blanco did brilliantly to claw a Messi header away. And out of nothing, Celta sprung forward to grab an equaliser.

Aspas benefitted when Samuel Umtiti pulled up injured in a footrace between the pair, allowing the Celta man to scamper into the box and set up Gomez. From close range, the in-form forward took his time and finished with aplomb.

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Per Agence France-Presse's Kieran Canning, the injury represented a double blow for Barcelona:

Gerard Pique should've put Barca back in front, as he was played in by Messi and rounded the keeper, but he couldn't find the right angle with his effort, and it cannoned off the post.

As the game entered the last 10 minutes, neither side seemed content with a point, and both had more chances to win it.

Messi headed wide from close range with the Celta defence stationary, then, at the end of a rapid Celta break, Pione Sisto was denied by Ter Stegen when one-on-one.

In the end, a draw was a fair result between two teams that performed to a high standard. Even so, on home soil, the Blaugrana will view this as two potentially big points dropped in their pursuit of the La Liga title.