Barcelona edges Celta to restore 9-point lead over Real Madrid but Yamal and Cancelo injured

MADRID (AP) — Barcelona restored its nine-point lead over Real Madrid in the Spanish league on Wednesday with a 1-0 win over Celta Vigo during which Lamine Yamal and João Cancelo were injured before halftime.

Yamal was hurt while converting a penalty that secured Barcelona's eighth straight league victory.

Spain forward Yamal, 18, and Portugal defender Cancelo, 27, had to be replaced with apparent muscle ailments that raise concerns ahead of the World Cup in June.

There were no immediate details about the severity of their injuries.

Barcelona coach Hansi Flick said both players would be better evaluated on Thursday.

“Of course it's a real blow for us because Lamine is a very important player for the team,” Barcelona midfielder Gavi said. “He was upset in the locker room. I don't know how long he will be sidelined because of the injury, but hopefully he will be back as soon as possible because we need him.”

Yamal converted his penalty in the 40th minute and immediately looked to the bench and signalled that he was hurt. He dropped to the ground as his teammates arrived to celebrate, then appeared to grab the back of his left leg.

Yamal left the field on his own after being attended by doctors. He talked briefly with coach Hansi Flick on the sidelines before walking into the locker-room tunnel by himself.

Cancelo had already been replaced in the 24th for an apparent muscle injury to his right leg.

“We hope their injuries are not serious and they are back with us as soon as possible,” Barcelona goalkeeper Joan García said.

The match was stopped for about 15 minutes shortly after Yamal converted the penalty because a fan had to be attended by doctors in the stands.

Madrid had moved within six points of the lead with a 2-1 home win against Alaves on Tuesday. There are six rounds left.

Atletico Madrid's league struggles continued with a 3-2 loss at Elche, its fourth-consecutive match without a victory in the competition.

The visitors were a man down from the 30th after Thiago Almada was sent off for grabbing an opponent inside the area.

It was Atletico's first match since losing the Copa del Rey final to Real Sociedad in a penalty shootout. Before that, Diego Simeone's team had eliminated Barcelona in the quarterfinals of the Champions League.

Atletico has only one win in its last eight matches in all competitions — 2-0 at Barcelona in the first leg. It advanced to the semifinals despite a 2-1 loss at home.

André Silva scored twice for Elche, including the 75th-minute winner. He had already converted a first-half penalty caused by Almada's foul.

Elche is out of the relegation zone with the victory, its third in four matches.

Sociedad's Copa celebrations were marred by a 1-0 loss to visiting Getafe, which moved into sixth place with its seventh win in 10 matches. Sociedad stayed eighth.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Barcelona's Lamine Yamal lies on the pitch injured during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Barcelona and Celta Vigo in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, April 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Joan Monfort)

Barcelona's Lamine Yamal scores the opening goal by a penalty during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Barcelona and Celta Vigo in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, April 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Joan Monfort)

Barcelona's Alejandro Balde, left, and Celta's Marcos Alonso challenge for the ball during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Barcelona and Celta Vigo in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, April 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Joan Monfort)

Barcelona's Lamine Yamal celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Barcelona and Celta Vigo in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, April 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Joan Monfort)

Barcelona's Lamine Yamal leaves the pitch injured during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Barcelona and Celta Vigo in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, April 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Joan Monfort)

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexican authorities on Wednesday continued to muddle the official account over the role of two CIA agents in a counternarcotics operation in northern Mexico and the extent to which Mexico's federal government was aware of the U.S. involvement in the incident, which has started to ignite tensions with the White House.

The incident has increasingly fueled speculation in the Latin American nation as Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum for more than a year has repeatedly underscored her country's sovereignty and publicly turned down offers by U.S. President Donald Trump of intervention on cartels.

The Mexican government acknowledges the presence of U.S. agencies on Mexican territory but says that they cannot participate in on-the-ground operations.

Mexican and U.S. officials have been offering contradictory accounts for days. After the Mexican government originally said it had no knowledge of any sort operation or U.S. involvement, the president admitted Wednesday that federal forces were involved and another high-level official acknowledged that the government at least discussed the matter with the U.S.

The collaboration came to light this week after two local investigators in the northern Mexican state of Chihuahua and two CIA agents — originally identified as U.S. Embassy officials — reportedly died in a car crash in the early morning on Sunday while driving back from an operation to destroy cartel laboratories in a rugged area of Mexico. The local government said the convoy drove off the side of a ravine and the car exploded.

The Americans killed were from the CIA, The Associated Press confirmed on Tuesday with a U.S. official and two other people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive intelligence matters.

Sheinbaum on Wednesday maintained that she had no knowledge of the operation between the U.S. and local Chihuahua authorities, and that it could constitute a violation of Mexico's law, because any such action should be approved by the federal government.

In her press briefing she said she was considering possible sanctions on Chihuahua’s government, and emphasized that the operation didn’t constitute a new security strategy by Trump in her country. She added that she sent a letter to the U.S. ambassador requesting that he provide all available information regarding the incident and that she planned to speak to Chihuahua's governor.

“There cannot be agents from any U.S. government institution operating in the Mexican field,” Sheinbaum said Wednesday. “It is very important that something like this not be allowed to go unaddressed."

The CIA particularly has a tainted legacy in Latin America, associated in decades past with orchestrating coups and backing military dictatorships in a number of countries. Despite that, the agency has maintained a presence in Mexico for many years, which has also been the subject of contention in Mexican politics.

On Wednesday afternoon, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt pushed back on Sheinbaum's comments, saying that U.S. efforts to counter cartels in Mexico “is not only a benefit to the American people, but to her people as well.”

“I think the president would agree that some sympathy from Claudia Sheinbaum would be well worth it for the two American lives that were lost, considering all that the United States of America is doing currently under this president to stop the scourge of drug trafficking through Mexico to the United States,” Leavitt said in an appearance on Fox News.

The Trump administration has provided very few comments on the incident since the Sunday crash. The CIA declined to comment on Wednesday.

The back-and-forth comes after days of contradictions in accounts, which have raised eyebrows and have prompted experts to say it underscores heightened U.S. involvement in security operations in Mexico and across the region.

Those only continued on Wednesday when Sheinbaum acknowledged that Mexico's army participated in the operation, but didn't know that the U.S. agents were present. Days before, Chihuahua's Attorney General César Jáuregui said the investigation came following months of investigation by state prosecutors and Mexico's military.

Later on Wednesday, Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch said at a news conference that the Defense Ministry had previously “received a petition for security support” by the U.S. But, he added, that “going to support an operation is different from actually being part of the planning of a operation.”

“Agents have never been in the field with us," he added.

David Klepper and Aamer Madhani in Washington, and Fabiola Sánchez in Mexico City, contributed to this report.

Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

FILE - Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum speaks during her daily morning press conference at the National Palace in Mexico City, Nov. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte, File)