Barcelona Remain Unbeaten in La Liga After Scoreless Draw with Getafe

Barcelona were held to a frustrating goalless draw by Getafe at Camp Nou on Sunday, as Ernesto Valverde's La Liga leaders were unable to break down an organised visiting side.

The draw means Barcelona are now seven points clear of Atletico Madrid at the top of the table and still undefeated in the league after 23 games.

The hosts were without first choice centre-backs Samuel Umtiti and Gerard Pique, which allowed January signing Yerry Mina a full debut alongside Lucas Digne in the heart of the defence. The Catalan giants shared their lineup via Twitter:

The changes seemed to affect the hosts who struggled to find their usual passing fluency in the first half. They were also frustrated by a strong defensive performance from Getafe, who were organised at the back and defended in numbers.

The action did hot up a little towards half-time as Getafe went close as Francisco Portillo picked out Angel Rodriguez who beat Mina, but his shot took a nick off the defender and flew just past the post. 

Barcelona then did get the ball in the back of the net through Luis Suarez at the very end of the first half but saw it disallowed due to offside. The Uruguayan latched on to a Lionel Messi free-kick and finished with some style, but the flag had gone up and it did not count.

Opta showed just how much Barca were struggling in front of goal:

The second half was a similar story with good chances at a premium for both sides. Mauro Arambarri saw a shot deflected wide, before Suarez put another effort off target and Philippe Coutinho was denied by goalkeeper Vicente Guaita.

La Liga writer Andrew Gaffney said Getafe deserved credit for frustrating Barca:

In search of inspiration, Valverde sent on Ousmane Dembele and Andres Iniesta, and the hosts began to pen back Getafe as they searched for the elusive opening goal. Messi clipped a free-kick over the bar before picking out Mina who headed wide.

The centre-back also headed a Dembele cross just wide as Barca ramped up the pressure in the closing stages. Messi started to have more of an impact, cutting inside and testing Guaita again with another shot from range.

However, they could not find a way through, and Getafe's success was explained by Sky Sports' Guillem Balague:

Barcelona almost nicked it late on as Dembele crossed for Suarez, and his header was just tipped over the bar by Guaita. However, the visitors held on for a deserved point and also become the first side to keep a clean sheet against Barca in the league this season, per La Liga:

It was a difficult afternoon for Barca who just could not find the creativity to unlock the Getafe defence, with Suarez in particular unable to replicate his recent sparkling form.