Araujo nets in added time to secure Barcelona's triumph against Girona
Ronald Araujo scored in the dying moments to clinch a 2-1 victory for Barcelona over Girona on Saturday, propelling the champions to the summit of La Liga.
The defender, deployed as an impromptu striker, found the net in the 93rd minute, giving Barca a slender one-point advantage over Real Madrid, who face Getafe on Sunday.
After suffering back-to-back losses, Barca just managed to overcome 19th-placed Girona courtesy of Araujo's timely strike.
Pedri Gonzalez put Barcelona in front early, but Axel Witsel levelled with an acrobatic overhead kick for a Girona team that nearly earned a well-deserved draw.
"Occasionally, you must grind out wins like this one, we squandered numerous opportunities and so did they," Fermin Lopez said to DAZN.
"We battled right to the finish and grabbed that crucial second goal, the second half was frantic but I believe we merited the victory and we achieved it."
Barca manager Hansi Flick reinstated Lamine Yamal in the starting eleven following his recovery from a groin issue that sidelined him for Spain's latest World Cup qualifiers.
The young winger had also sat out the 4-1 defeat to Sevilla in Barcelona's previous La Liga fixture, from which the Catalans have now recovered.
With key figures such as forward Robert Lewandowski sidelined by injury, Flick gave a La Liga debut to 17-year-old attacker Toni Fernandez.
In solidarity with the boycott initiated by the Spanish players' union over Barca's December clash with Villarreal relocated to Miami, players from both sides paused for 15 seconds after the initial whistle.
Barca seized control and went ahead in the 13th minute via Pedri, following a neat exchange between Jules Kounde and Yamal.
The winger supplied Pedri, who advanced into the penalty area and slotted the ball calmly into the bottom right corner.
Girona, who had secured a top-four spot two campaigns back but have faltered since, quickly restored parity.
Witsel unleashed a spectacular bicycle kick to level in the 20th minute, stunning the home crowd.
The away side pressed aggressively, exploiting gaps in Barcelona's advanced defensive line to pose repeated threats.
Barca custodian Wojciech Szczesny pulled off a superb stop to thwart Vladyslav Vanat bearing down on goal.
Cristian Portu hit the upright after breaching Barca's backline, while Bryan Gil fired wide after another clear run through on goal.
Marcus Rashford clipped the bar with a free-kick at the opposite end prior to the half-time break in a lively contest.
Level at the break
Pau Cubarsi bundled the ball over the line for Barca around the hour mark, yet the effort was disallowed due to a foul committed by Eric Garcia during the sequence.
Flick opted for an unexpected double substitution, pulling off key talents Yamal and Pedri while pursuing an equaliser, possibly conserving energy for Tuesday's Champions League encounter with Olympiakos and the upcoming Clasico next weekend.
Paulo Gazzaniga executed a brilliant near-post block to repel Rashford as Barca intensified pressure, with replacement Lopez proving influential.
Rashford pressed for a spot-kick after Vitor Reis struck him in the face with a flailing arm inside the area, but the official dismissed Barca's claims.
In a last-ditch move, Flick introduced centre-back Araujo up top, and the Uruguayan obliged in deep added time by converting Frenkie de Jong's delivery to seal the points.
Araujo tore off his jersey in jubilation as Barca salvaged a win that appeared unlikely following a subdued second-half showing.
"We sense that we delivered a strong performance, yet we spurned four or five golden chances and ought to have netted more to seal it," Witsel remarked to DAZN.
"It's tough psychologically to concede like that, but we must focus on our first-half efforts and carry that forward to the next game."