Barcelona, Apr 20 (IANS): Espanyol and Celta Vigo battled to a 1-1 stalemate here, a disappointing but not disastrous outcome for a pair of football clubs chasing points with only a handful of matches left to play in the La Liga season.

The home side, which sits eight points above the drop zone, was on Tuesday hoping to put more distance between themselves and relegation, while Celta missed a chance to leapfrog Athletic Club and tighten their grip on a Europa League spot, reports Efe.

For Espanyol's fans, however, the team's performance at the Cornella de Llobregat marked an improvement after their recent 1-2 loss to 19th placed Levante.

The Catalan side started well, as Abraham took advantage of a poor clearance by the Vigo defense to go for goal in the seventh minute, though the ball ended up in the hands of visiting keeper Sergio Alvarez Conde.

Espanyol's intensity disrupted the Celta attack, but the hosts also struggled to create chances.

The visitors improved as the first half wore on and Iago Aspas put Celta up 1-0 with a goal in the 28th minute.

Espanyol responded by upping the tempo, with chances for Abraham and Hernan Perez lifting spirits in stands ahead of Marco Asensio's equaliser in the 39th minute.

The two squads spent most of the second half scrapping in the midfield and neither ventured enough to deserve the victory.