Captain Sergi Roberto nets twice as Barcelona withstands bottom-placed Almeria to secure three crucial points in the La Liga title chase.
The outcome propels Barca to the third spot in the standings, trailing leaders Girona by six points and second-placed Real Madrid by four, both of whom have a match in hand.
Goals from Raphinha and a brace from Roberto twice gave the home team the lead, but Almeria managed to level through Leo Baptistao and Edgar Gonzalez.
Nevertheless, Roberto’s late goal halted their three-game winless streak.
Xavi’s squad is set to travel to Dallas for a friendly against Mexican side Club America before heading into their winter break. Their next fixture is scheduled against Las Palmas on January 4.
To be fair, Barca had opportunities to secure a more convincing victory against a resilient Almeria side that benefited from some defensive indecision and poor play by Barcelona. Leo Baptistao equalized after Raphinha’s close-range strike, and Gonzalez capitalized on a mistake from stand-in goalkeeper Inaki Pena to level the score after Roberto’s header in the 60th minute.
Barca’s forward, Robert Lewandowski, with three goals in 14 matches across all competitions, had numerous promising chances to find the net.
In the pursuit of victory, Ilkay Gundogan missed a header from close range before Roberto stepped in, converting his attempt beyond the visiting goalkeeper Luis Maximiano from a well-executed pass by the Polish forward.