Junior Firpo 8, Antoine Griezmann 6, no Lionel Messi: Barcelona player ratings v Eibar

Catalans held to 1-1 draw by lowly Eibar in another setback to La Liga title hopes

BARCELONA PLAYER RATINGS: Marc-Andre Ter Stegen 6. Hit by a counter from Kike Garcia against the run of play. The former Middlesbrough striker also scored against Real Madrid over Christmas. The goal Barca conceded came from a mistake, but it was not Ter Stegen’s. AFP

Junior Firpo 8. In for the suspended Jordi Alba and set up a disallowed opener with a run down the left, making use of the flanks which Ronald Koeman wanted from his team. Set up 66th minute equaliser for Dembele from left. Cross after cross. One of his best Barca games. AFP

Clement Lenglet 7. Fouled Inui which saw Eibar penalty claims and lost ball too much – a risk when a team plays as high as Barca, but solid enough. AFP

Oscar Mingueza 6. The only Catalan and only La Masia graduate in the starting XI. Has become a regular this month and a big test against the Basques fleet-heeled attackers. AFP

Ronald Araujo 6. Won penalty and busy with Eibar’s pressing, but at fault for Eibar’s opener with an unfortunate mistake. Far more touches than any other player as the Catalans dominated possession and fronted up to talk to the media after. EPA

Sergino Dest. 7 Played wide and had a glancing header saved in first half from a set play. Got forward and put balls in, but off at half time and replaced by more attacking Dembele. AP

Miralem Pjanic 7. Third league start of the season and first time he’d started consecutive games. Shot wide and deserved to start ahead of Busquets. Decent alongside De Jong. AFP

Frenkie De Jong 6. Fifth straight game doing well and trying to pick the passes to release the forwards in an injury hit side in transition. Brings balance. Reuters

Pedri 7. Playing well enough to keep Coutinho out of the side and played neatly weighted passes forward. Incredible pass to set up Dembele in second half and again mature beyond his 18 years. Getty Images

Antoine Griezmann 6. Needed to step up with Messi absent, but didn’t. Better with Dembele on and started shooting on sight, but not on target enough. AFP

Martin Braithwaite 6. Almost a year since he joined the club, he needs to take chances when he starts – especially as Messi was out due to an extended break. Put an early penalty left and wide – the Catalans have missed three of their last four penalties and Braithwaite has missed his last four. Thought he’d side-footed opener but offside. Not his night. EPA

SUBS: Dembele 8. On for Dest at half time and the first player off a healthy Barca bench. Immediately lively as he sprinted, ran at defenders and always asked for the ball. Should have scored from Pedri pass. Finally got 67th minute equaliser for second league goal of season with a superb finish after arriving at back post. Excelling since back after injury. AFP

Francisco Trincao 6. On for Griezmann just before equaliser and involved in the goal. Shot wide with a very late chance for the winner. Getty Images

Philippe Coutinho 6. On for Pjanic a minute before equaliser in a double substitution and involved in the goal. Injured later on. AP

Sergio Busquets 6. On for Lenglet towards the end – an odd change as Barca wanted to win instead of dropping nine points from nine games at home so far this season. AFP

Puig Ins. On for Pedri for final two minutes but unable to change anything. Eibar had lost 11 of their 12 games against Barça since promotion and drawn one. Tonight it was two (no match photo available). Reuters

Barcelona struggled in the absence of Lionel Messi on Tuesday as the Catalans were held to a 1-1 draw by Eibar at the Camp Nou to fall further off the pace in La Liga's title race.

Danish forward Martin Braithwaite missed a penalty in the first half and it was the visitors who broke the deadlock in the 57th-minute when Kike Garcia opened the scoring for Eibar.

Ousmane Dembele, on as a substitute, levelled for Barcelona 10 minutes later before Braithwaite had the chance to seal the win only to miss a golden chance from close range.

Messi, whose Barca future remains shrouded in uncertainty, missed the match due to an ankle injury but was present and watched from the stands.

The draw sees Barcelona drop to sixth place, seven points behind leaders Atletico Madrid, who have two games in hand.

In the photo gallery above, Andy Mitten has provided his player ratings for the Barcelona squad. To move on to the next photo, click on the arrows or if using a mobile device, simply swipe.

Lionel Messi watched on from the stands. Reuters