A point rescued, and nothing gained
Alejo Tabares scored the equaliser in a 1–1 draw at Los Andes, and All Boys left Lomas de Zamora exactly where they arrived: 16th in Group A, 35 points, two above Acassuso on 33 and San Miguel on 32 (3) (4). Villarreal had put Los Andes ahead, and Mundo Ascenso's verdict on the whole ninety minutes was "escasísimo nivel técnico" (6). Four draws in their last five. A team that keeps taking one point per game is not surviving, it is waiting.
The draws are the problem, not the defeats
Look at the last five results: 1–1 at San Miguel, 0–0 against Colón, a 2–1 loss at Deportivo Morón, 0–0 against Godoy Cruz, then 1–1 at Los Andes (3) (4). One defeat in five looks like resilience. It is four dropped points from winning positions in the margins. In a table where the gap to relegation is two points, a draw is worth the same as a loss when the teams beneath you are hunting. Savour the unbeaten run less, count the goals more: one goal in the last three matches, and that one came from Tabares, a defender (4) (6).
Then there is the squad. Nardozza has a long list to choose from, Coronel at the back, Tabares, Barrientos and Cano among the names travelling, but selection has not produced a cutting edge (2). With two relegation places live, the coach now needs wins from a group that has forgotten how to find them.
Córdoba, and a genuine fork in the road
Racing de Córdoba at the estadio Miguel Sancho on Sunday, 20:00 CET, fecha 35 (2) (5). Win and All Boys reach 38 points, a six-point buffer over Acassuso with one match left. Anything less and the final round becomes a maths exercise against Estudiantes on Saturday 31 October (2) (3). That is the whole season in ninety minutes, and the margin for error has already gone.
What to watch
Two things. Whether Nardozza starts with more than one forward, because another 1–1 shape in Córdoba leaves the job half done. And whether anyone other than Tabares scores. If the goals keep coming from the back line, 16th is where this team finishes.
