Lionel Messi had a penalty saved early in the second half as Barcelona were held to a 1-1 draw at Valencia in a hard-fought King’s Cup semifinal first leg on Wednesday.
Valencia snatched a 27th-minute lead at Mestalla when Jeremy Mathieu found space down the left wing and Jonas clipped the Frenchman’s low cross past goalkeeper Jose Manuel Pinto. Pinto was lucky to be still on the pitch after television replays showed he handled the ball outside his area in the 18th minute but the referee waved play on.
Barca captain Carles Puyol equalised 10 minutes before the break when he met a deep Cesc Fabregas corner and nodded past Diego Alves.
“We created a lot of problems for them and they have always done the same to us, at home or away,” Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola said. “It was a great result but the tie is not decided and now we need to win the return leg and see if we can make the final.”
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