LaLiga | Barcelona edges Valencia to put pressure on Real Madrid

Raphinha scored a first-half winner for Barcelona, which missed a penalty from Ferran Torres early in the second half and then saw defender Ronald Araujo sent off in the Spanish league match against Valencia

Barcelona kept its title-chasing momentum by beating Valencia 1-0 and increasing its lead over Real Madrid in the Spanish league on Sunday.

Raphinha scored a first-half winner for Barcelona, which missed a penalty from Ferran Torres early in the second half and then saw defender Ronald Araujo sent off.

The win at the Camp Nou stadium came three days after Barcelona defeated Madrid 1-0 at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinals. The Catalan club took its league lead over Madrid to 10 points, increasing the pressure on its rival. Madrid plays at Real Betis later Sunday.

Barcelona had lost two in a row — against Manchester United in the Europa League and Almeria in the league — before coming up with the big Copa victory against Madrid at the Bernabéu.

Raphinha scored with a header after a well-placed pass by Sergio Busquets in the 15th minute. Torres missed the penalty in the 55th and four minutes later Araujo was sent off for stopping a breakaway.

Barcelona got the win despite still missing some of its top players, including Robert Lewandowski, the league’s leading scorer. Ousmane Dembélé and Pedri also didn’t play because of injuries, while playmaker Gavi was out because of a yellow-card suspension.

“We are not being effective up front and end up suffering to close out matches,” said Barcelona coach Xavi, who watched from the stands because of a suspension.