Liga II roundup: Alverca make their move for a return to the big time | OneFootball

One week without the roundup was enough to turn the most competitive competition in Portugal upside now. Not quite literally, but some teams joined different parts of the table, as well as different battles and objectives.

Leaders Tondela and Penafiel have been their firepower for some time now. They are lucky to have built an enormous advantage in their opposition. However, what used to be a nine-point gap has now shrunk to just three points. Torreense is the only team that has kept its place as a clear contender, despite the draw against the mighty Benfica B.

Sleeping giant Alverca returns (maybe)

After numerous years away from the professional stage, Alverca seem to be rising up from the ashes. Even though we are 15 games away from the final round of the Segunda Liga, it is safe to say that Alverca have come to stay until the end for a shot at promotion to the main stage in Portugal. A 1-0 win at Felgueiras on Saturday catapulted them to within striking distance of the promotion places.

After the 2001/2002 season when Alverca were relegated, they entered a downward spiral that seemed it was never coming to an end. However, with João Pereira (now coaching Casa Pia and doing a great job at it), they managed to go up to the Segunda Liga from Liga 3 last season. With a new manager and with the promotion to professional football, the hopes of getting back-to-back promotions weren’t flying high… until now.

Alverca is one of the clubs with most history in Portugal and it would be a delight for many to see them get a promotion in a beautiful Cinderela story.

The pit is dark and full of terrors

Salvation is more of an oasis for the three bottom teams Mafra (16 points), FC Porto B (14 points) and Oliveirense (11 points). FC Porto B are maybe the most consistent team of these three: they have been consistently bad. João Brandão is probably the worst mistake of the Villas-Boas administration, even worse than Vítor Bruno. Oliveirense, however, seem to be improving and are definitely more organised than ever (which was not that hard). Two draws in a row, one of them against Penafiel, the undisputed leader of the championship.

Mafra is the same old story: bad luck and childish mistakes have brought them to the pit, now five points shy of the relegation zone occupied by Marítimo.

Player of the week: Samba Baldé (Penafiel)

If you are a Penafiel fan, you can pray to your new god, Samba Baldé. After (another) poor performance from the attackers, Samba Baldé shined between the posts.

A renovated Vizela, with an absolute killer instinct and with their eyes set on a promotion spot, were doing everything they could to get past him. But with four incredibly hard saves, the goalkeeper from Guiné-Bissau secured the draw and the championship lead for Penafiel.