Ferran Torres scored a second-half penalty to salvage a 1-1 draw for wasteful Barcelona against Napoli in the first leg of their Europa League knockout round play-off.
Barca were competing in Europe's secondary competition for the first time since 2003-04 and enjoyed the better of the game, but Xavi's men could not turn their superiority into a win.
Napoli actually took the lead through Piotr Zielinski, as Barca went close through Torres, Pedri and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who was making his first start since joining from Arsenal.
The hosts were similarly dominant in the second half and got a deserved equaliser from the spot, but Napoli held out for a draw ahead of next week's second leg at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
A bright start saw Barca go close several times, with Nico Gonzalez testing Alex Meret and Aubameyang shaving the outside of the post.
Victor Osimhen shot at Marc-Andre ter Stegen from a tight angle soon after on the break, but Barca continued to probe, with Torres spurning a glorious chance when shooting wide with only Meret to beat in the 28th minute.
Napoli capitalised with the next attack, Zielinski smashing at Ter Stegen before burying the rebound to round off an excellent move.
Barca's level dipped initially after the break, but they were quite literally handed a lifeline just before the hour as Adama Traore's cross clipped Juan Jesus' hand, and Torres converted the spot-kick after the VAR's intervention.
Barca piled the pressure on towards the end, but Torres blazed over from 12 yards and Luuk de Jong saw an overhead kick go agonisingly wide.
Injured Barcelona star Yamal withdraws from Spain squad
Spain will be without star winger Lamine Yamal for their upcoming Nations League games against Denmark and Switzerland.
Yamal starred for La Roja at Euro 2024 and has been exceptional for Barcelona so far this season.
The teenager has already provided a LaLiga-leading seven assists this term, while his 12 goal contributions rank joint-third in Spain's top tier, behind club-mates Robert Lewandowski (16) and Raphinha (13).
Yamal has also attempted (84) and completed (34) more dribbles than any other player in LaLiga in 2024-25, while Barca's two league defeats have come in matches in which the attacker did not start; a 4-2 loss at Osasuna in September, and a 1-0 defeat to Real Sociedad on Sunday.
Indeed, injured Yamal was left out of Hansi Flick's squad against La Real, and Spain have now called up Bryan Gil in his place, and Barcelona confirmed on Monday that the 17-year-old has suffered a grade one high ankle sprain, and will be out of action for up to three weeks.
Luis de la Fuente's team are top of their Nations League group, with 10 points from their four matches.
La Roja face Denmark on Friday before hosting Switzerland on November 18.
Should Spain collect one more win from their final two matches of 2024, then they will set a new national record for the number of victories in all competitions in a single calendar year. surpassing the 10 they managed in 2009.
Barca also confirmed that Lewandowski will need 10 days out of action after suffering a back injury, meaning he will sit out Poland's matches against Portugal and Scotland.
Conte fumes at VAR after 1-1 draw with Inter
Antonio Conte was frustrated that VAR did not reverse a penalty decision against Napoli as they played out a 1-1 draw with Inter on Sunday.
Hakan Calhanoglu failed to convert the spot kick in question late in the game, with the Turkish international having equalised for the hosts after Scott McTominay's opener.
Despite the decision not affecting the result in the end, Conte criticised VAR for not overruling the referee's decision to penalise Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa for a foul on Denzel Dumfries.
"Can they [VAR] only intervene when it suits them? A decision from the referee like this can transform a match and VAR cannot do anything about it," Conte told DAZN.
"Either VAR is there to correct errors or it is not. If there is an error, it has to intervene. It really angers me, but it does to all coaches. It has to intervene if there is a mistake.
"If there is VAR, it must be used to correct errors or show the referee situations that he did not see. If it's a clear error, and it was, then why should [referee Maurizio] Mariani be allowed to just do that."
Despite his frustration with refereeing decisions, Conte was satisfied with his team's performance, as they held strong against a spirited second-half display from the Italian champions.
"I said that we would not come here to just be sparring partners against the strongest squad in Serie A, so it was important for us to face them with strength, character, accepting duels all over the field," he said.
"On that score, I am very satisfied. It was not easy to play here. We all know that we are making improvements and working hard, otherwise, you don't come to San Siro twice and also against Juventus without defeat.
"The lads are proving themselves, though, of course, we could've done much, much more in terms of quality today. There were too many errors, a lot of technical errors, but I am sure there will be further improvements."
Napoli's point ensured they stayed top of Serie A heading into the international break, moving them to 26 points in what is shaping up to be a tight title race. Conte's side sit one point clear of Atalanta, Fiorentina, Inter and Lazio.
Inzaghi believes Inter deserved win after dominant second half
Simone Inzaghi was proud of Inter's second-half performance but believes they should have come away with all three points from their 1-1 draw with Napoli.
Hakan Calhanoglu scored with a stunning strike to cancel out Scott McTominay's opener for Napoli, but missed a penalty for the first time in eight years.
He had previously never missed a penalty in Serie A, netting 17 in a row before Sunday.
"I congratulated the team, if there was one side that should've won, then it was Inter. The second half was dominated by us," Inzaghi told DAZN.
"We went behind on a set play situation where we should've done better, but we kept our heads and did not allow Napoli practically anything.
"We hit the woodwork twice, missed a penalty, so I don’t know what more we could've done."
While Inter dominated the second half, the strike duo of Lautaro Martinez and Marcus Thuram were largely kept quiet.
Martinez managed just two shots, worth 0.24 expected goals (xG), hitting the target with neither, while Thuram did not manage a single attempt, though Inzaghi was still impressed by their displays.
"They worked hard for the team and kept us solid," Inzaghi said.
"As a coach, I have to leave the result aside and focus on the performance, which was excellent against a quality opponent."
With nearly a third of the Serie A season completed, the title race is shaping up to be tight with Napoli leading the way on 26 points. Atalanta, Fiorentina, Inter and Lazio, meanwhile, are all on 25.
"I said this would be a very balanced campaign and that is proving to be true, but I saw a wonderful Inter tonight," Inzaghi said.
"We could probably have made more of our chances, but let us not forget the strength of the side we were facing."
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