Barcelona, Feb. 17 -- Lionel Messi had a penalty saved after scoring from the spot as Barcelona struggled to end a run of poor results before it turns to the Champions League knockout rounds.

Messi's first penalty opportunity proved good enough in an uninspiring 1-0 victory over Valladolid at Camp Nou in the Spanish league on Saturday. But Barcelona's all-time leading scorer had a second spot kick stopped by goalie Jordi Masip.

Barcelona, which had drawn three games in a row across all competitions, visits Lyon on Tuesday in the opening leg of their Champions League round-of-16 tie.

Messi and his teammates missed chances to put away Valladolid, and when they did arrive Masip was up to the challenge.

Messi beat Masip with a perfectly e...