Barcelona restored their nine-point lead in La Liga with a narrow victory over Athletic Bilbao.
Raphinha scored the winner with a drilled effort in first-half injury time.
Barca goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen made a number of fine stops to deny Bilbao, whose late Anakin Williams goal was ruled out for handball after a lengthy Video Assistant Referee (VAR) check.
Oier Zarraga’s effort was also cleared by Jules Kounde in extra time as Barca clung on.
It meant Xavi’s side extended their advantage over their rivals, who cut Barca’s lead to six points after beating Espanyol on Saturday.
The two rivals will face off in El Clasico at the Nou Camp on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Ernesto Valverde’s Bilbao side are ninth after their 10th defeat of the season, although they can count themselves unlucky after a spirited performance.
Barca’s top scorer Robert Lewandowski, back in the side after recovering from injury, had an early chance when he broke clear on goal but his shot was blocked by Julian Agrirezabala.
Bilbao seemed to have a spark, going close twice in quick succession when Williams’ shot was saved by Ter Stegen and Raul Garcia’s header from the resulting corner hit the bar.
Barca went ahead when Sergio Busquets’ probing pass was collected by Rafinha in the area and the former Leeds forward fired across Aguirrezabala and into the far corner for his second goal in successive games.
Brazil’s celebrations were initially cut short by the assistant referee’s flag, but replays showed he was well offside and VAR overturned the decision.
Bilbao were the stronger side in the second half, but efforts from Alex Berenguer and Iker Monin were brilliantly saved by Ter Stegen.
Bilbao thought their pressure deserved an equalizer when Williams raced onto a pass over the top and headed the ball home, but the goal was eventually handballed by Minin.
