Spanish Second Division "A": LaLiga2, 2022-2023

[AlanK]

HALFWAY POINT for LaLiga2--here are the standings

1. Las Palmas------------38 points; +24-12 Next hosts Racing.
2. Eibar-----------------37 points; +24-17 Hosts Ibiza.
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3. Levante--------------36 points; +22-13 At Sporting.
4. Burgos---------------35 points; +19-11 At Alavés.
5. Alavés---------------34 points; +22-20 Hosts Burgos.
6. Granada--------------32 points; +24-15 Hosts Cartagena.
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7. Albacete-------------32 points; +27-25 At Huesca.
8. Cartagena-----------32 points; +23-21 At Granada.
9. Leganés-------------30 points; +22-20 Hosts Lugo.
10. Andorra------------29 points; +22-17 Hosts Oviedo.
11. Huesca-------------28 points; +17-18 Hosts Albacete.
12. Villarreal "B"--------28 points; +23-25 At Ponfe.
13. Sporting-----------27 points; +22-22 Hosts Levante.
14. Oviedo------------27 points; +13-15 At Andorra.
15. Mirandés----------26 points; +25-27 At Zaragoza.
16. Zaragoza----------25 points; +18-19 Hosts Mirandés.
17. Tenerife-----------25 points; +22-24 At Málaga.
18. Racing------------21 points; +13-17 At Las Palmas.
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19. Lugo--------------21 points; +18-26 At Leganés.
20. Ponferradina-------21 points; +20-29 Hosts Villarreal "B".
21. Málaga------------19 points; +16-25 Hosts Tenerife.
22. Ibiza--------------16 points; +14-32 At Eibar.

And the second half of the season starts on 6 Jan. 2023--El Día de los Reyes Magoa.

[AlanK]

And next up: the start of the second half of the season, at least in LaLIga2, begins with Jornada 22, to wit

Fri. 6 Jan.

1615 Ponferradina 2, Villarreal "B" 1 Ponfe is in the drop; a win could lift them out thereof, at least temporarily. The Mini-Sub is in mid-table, seven points above the drop. The Mini-Sub leads at halftime on a goal by Lozano at 45'+1', but Ponfe comes back to win in the Toralín on goals by Hugo Vallejo at 57' and Amo at 81'. Ponfe climbs, for the moment, three points above the drop.

1830 Sporting 1, Levante 1 Sporting is in lower mid-table, six points above the drop and five points back of the last playoff spot. Levante has climbed to third place, just a point back of an automatic promotion spot. At 27', Montiel converts a pk to give Levante the lead and lift his team into the league lead--0-1. Halftime in the Molinón. Can Sporting come from behind Yes . . . at 47', Juan scores for Sporting--1-1. And that's the final score; Sporting climbs two places to 11th on GD; Levante is now second on GD.

2100 Leganés 1, Lugo 0 Lega is in upper mid-table, two points back of the last playoff spot. Lugo is the top of the drop, back of the lowest team not in the drop only on GD. Scoreless first half in Butarque. At 56', Cissé lifts Lega into a playoff spot as he scores to give them the lead--1-0. And that's how it ends up

Sat. 7 Jan.

1615 Andorra 3, Oviedo 1 Andorra is in mid-table, three points shy of the last playoff spot. Oviedo is four places and two points back of Andorra. At 19', Albanis scores to give Andorra the lead--1-0. And at 45'+1', Albanis scores again, and so they go into halftime 2-0 for Andorra . . . At 75', Dani Calvo cuts the margin to 2-1. At 94', Bakis ices the win for Andorra--3-1; that's the final score.

1830 Málaga 1, Tenerife 1 Málaga is next-to-last, two points back of the lowest team not in the drop. Tete is four points above the drop in what has been a poor season for them overall. Scoreless first half in the Rosaleda. At 75', Shashoua of Tenerive breaks the ice--0-1. Another coffin nail for Málaga At 86', Rubén Castro ties it for Málaga--1-1. That's the final score; Málaga avoids losing, but remains next-to-last. For the moment, Tete climbs past Zaragoza to 16th place, at the moment five points above the drop.

2100 Alavés 1, Burgos 0 Alavés has lost four in a row and has dropped to fifth place, still only three points back of an automatic promotion spot. Burgos is one point and one place ahead of Alavés. This is the Game of the Week in LaLiga2 Scoreless first half in Mendizorroza. At 75', Abde gives Alavés the lead--1-0; Alavés at this moment is tied on points with Eibar and Levante with 37 points. And that's how it ends up, although Alavés is fourth when counting GD.

Sun. 8 Jan.

1400 Granada 1, Cartagena 0 Granada, the team with the best home record but with an awful road record, is in the last playoff spot, six points off the league lead. Cartagena is even on points with Granada, trailing the granadinos only on GD. Scoreless first half in the Nuevo Los Cármenes. At 70', Uzuni converts a pk to give Granada the lead--1-0. And Granada holds on to win by the minimum, assuring themselves of fifth place, ahead of Burgos on GD, at the end of Jornada 22.

1615 Zaragoza 0, Mirandés 0 Zaragoza is three places and four points above the drop. Mirandés is one point and one place ahead of the maños. Scoreless in the Romareda at the half. And scoreless as the final whistle blows.

1830 Las Palmas 1, Racing 1 The Canaries lead LaLiga2 by one point over Eibar. Racing Santander is above the drop only on GD. They will need a win here if they are to stay above the drop. At 24', Pejiño scores the goal that can keep Las Palmas atop LaLiga2--1-0. Halftime--can the Canaries hold their lead to remain atop LaLiga2 Or will Racing come back to win to climb above the drop At 86', Pombo converts a pk to tie for Racing, and the games ends in tablas, 1-1. Racing is now top of the drop; Las Palmas leads LaLiga2 by two points over Eibar; if the latter beats the farolillo rojo, Ibiza, in today's last game, Eibar will take over the lead.

2100 Eibar 1, Ibiza 0 Eibar is in second place, one point back of the pacesetters. Ibiza is dead last, five points back of the lowest team not in the drop. Eibar wins it with a goal by Stoichkov at 33' being the winner and lifting Eibar into first place in LaLiga2, ahead of Las Palmas by one point and three points ahead of both Levante and Alavés.

Mon. 9 Jan. 2100 Huesca 1, Albacete 1 Huesca is in mid-table, seven points above the drop and four points shy of the last playoff spot. El Alba is seventh, back of the last playoff spot only on GD. El Alba must win to finish the jornada tied on points with the fifth- and sixth-place teams. El Alba takes the lead at 43' on a goal by Hijinio--0-1 at the half. At 48', Blasco ties for the home team, and the game ends 1-1, with Albacete two points back of the last playoff spot.

[AlanK]

The Top and The Drop after Jornada 22

1. Eibar-------------40 points; +25-17 Next hosts Málaga.
2. Las Palmas--------39 points; +25-13 At Ibiza.
-------------------------------------
3. Levante-----------37 points; +23-14 Hosts Granada.
4. Alavés------------37 points; +23-20 At Oviedo.
5. Granada----------35 points; +25-15 At Levante.
6. Burgos------------35 points; +19-12 Hosts Andorra.
------------------------------------
------------------------------------
18. Ponferradina------24 points; +22-30 At Tenerife.
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19. Racing-----------22 points; +14-18 Hosts Sporting.
20. Lugo-------------21 points; +18-27 At Mirandés.
21. Málaga-----------20 points; +17-26 At Eibar.
22. Ibiza-------------16 points; +14-33 Hosts Las Palmas.

[AlanK]

Jornada 23 begins

Fri. 13 Jan. 2100 Oviedo 1, Alavés 0 Oviedo is 15th in LaLiga2, five points above the drop. Alavés is fourth, just three points off the league lead. Big win for Oviedo; the winning goal was by Tarín at 79'. Oviedo climbs all the way to 11th place, now eight points above the drop. Alavés could fall from fourth place as low as sixth, should Granada and Burgos win.

Sat. 14 Jan.--a bit unbalanced due to the SuperCup games this weekend, to wit

1400 Cartagena 0, Huesca 0 Cartagena is three points and four places shy of the last playoff spot. Huesca is one place and three points back of Cartagena. Scoreless first half in Cartagonova. And it ends scoreless. Cartagena passes Andorra for the moment and is in ninth place.

1615 Ibiza 1, Las Palmas 2 Ibiza is the farolillo rojo, now eight points back of the lowest team not in the drop. Las Palmas is one point and one place back of the league leaders, Eibar. At 22', Bogusz gives Ibiza the lead--1-0 at the half. Can the farolillo rojo hang one on one of the teams at the top Probably not: at 56', Sandro Ramírez ties it for Las Palmas--1-1. And, indeed, Jonathan Viera gives Las Palmas the lead at 62'--1-2. And that's how it ends.

1615 Villarreal "B" 2, Zaragoza 3 The Mini-Sub is 13th, six points above the drop. Zaragoza is two points and three places back of the Mini-Sub. At 27', Carlo scores for the Mini-Sub, and Fer Niño makes it 2-0 at 40'. Halftime. At 51', Iván Azón cuts the margin to 2-1. Mollejo ties it for the maños at 71'--2-2. At 91', Mollejo scores the winner for Zaragoza--2-3 the final.

1830 Racing 2, Sporting 0 Racing is the top of the drop, one place and one point back of Ponfe. Sporting is in mid-table, six points above the drop and seven points back of the last playoff spot. At 12, Mbouls gives Racing the lead; at 24', Matheus Aias makes it 2-0. If this is the final result, and the Tenerife-Ponfe game ends tied, Racing will be above the drop Halftime in the Sardinero. And it ends 2-0, so Racing is above the drop on GD ahead of Ponfe.

1830 Tenerife 0, Ponferradina 0 Tete is 17th, four points and two places above the drop; Ponfe trails Tenerife by two points and is two points ahead of Racing, the top of the drop. Halftime in the Heliodoro. And the game ends scoreless. Ponfe is back in the drop; Tenerife is 17th in LaLiga2.

2100 Levante 3, Granada 1 Game of the Week Third-place Levante trails the league leaders by just three points, and they're two points and two places ahead of Granada. The latter has a horrible road record of 1-3-7 Three goals in the first 20' At 11', Cantero guves Levante the lead; at 17', Campaña converts a pk to make it 2-0. Levante's Carlos Neva cuts the margin to 2-1 at 20'. Halftime in the Ciutat de Valencia. At 75', Bouldini makes it 3-1 for Levante. And that's the final. Levante, at the moment, is in second place, although that may change when Eibar plays tomorrow.

Sun. 15 Jan.

1400 Eibar 2, Málaga 1 Eibar leads LaLiga2, but by just one point over Las Palmas. Málaga is next-to-last, four points back of the lowest team not in the drop. Las Palmas won, so Eibar must win to retake the lead of LaLiga2. At 32', Stoichkov scores to give Eibar the lead in the game and the lead in LaLIga2--1-0. And it's still 1-0 at the half in Ipurúa. At 89', Burgos ties for Málaga--1-1; but that score lasts only a minute, as Berrocal scores what proves to be the winner for Eibar at 90'. Eibar is back atop LaLiga2; Málaga remains next-to-last.

1615 Burgos 2, Andorra 1 Burgos is in sixth place, the last playoff spot, five points off the league lead. Andorra is ninth, three points back of the last playoff spot. Albanis gives Andorra the lead at 39'--0-1 at the half. At 53', Elgezabel ties it for Burgos--1-1. At 70', Curro converts a pk to give Burgos the lead--2-1. That's the final score; Burgos climbs to fourth place in LaLiga2. Andorra drops to tenth place.

1615 Mirandés 2, Lugo 0 Mirandés is 14th, five points above the drop. Lugo is in the drop, three points back of Ponfe. Raúl gives Mirandés the lead at 30'--1-0 at halftime in Anduva. Raúl Navas makes it 2-0 at 62'. Mirandés wins and climbs into a three-way tie for 11th place. Lugo remains deep in the drop.

Mon. 16 Jan. 2100 Albacete 1, Leganés 0 El Alba is eighth, two points back of the last playoff spot. Lega is seventh, two points back of the last playoff spot and ahead of el Alba only on GD. The winner of this game, should there be one, will take over the last playoff spot. At 15', Dubasin gives el Alba the lead--1-0. And that's the score in the Carlos Belmonte at the half. And at game's end. El Alba in the last playoff spot.

[AlanK]

The Drop is known after Sunday's games in Jornada 23, to wit

18. Racing-------------25 points; +16-18 Next at Alavés.
--------------------------------------
19. Ponferradina--------25 points; +22-30 Hosts Eibar.
20. Lugo--------------21 points; +18-29 Hosts Villarreal "B".
21. Málaga------------20 points; +18-28 Hosts Burgos.
22. Ibiza--------------16 points; +15-35 At Granada.

[AlanK]

Jornada 23 is now complete; here is The Top

1. Eibar-------------43 points; +27-18 Next at Ponfe.
2. Las Palmas--------42 points; +27-14 Hosts Mirandés.
------------------------------------
3. Levante-----------40 points; +26-15 At Leganés.
4. Burgos-----------38 points; +21-13 At Málaga.
5. Alavés------------37 points; +23-21 Hosts Racing.
6. Albacete----------36 points; +29-26 At Andorra.
------------------------------------
7. Granada----------35 points; +26-18 Hosts Ibiza.

[AlanK]

Jornada 24 begins

Fri. 20 Jan. 2100 Las Palmas 2, Mirandés 1 #2 hosts #11. Scoreless first half in the Estadio Gran Canaria. A tie would lift Las Palmas into first place on GD over Eibar . . . for the moment, anyway. But at 50', Mirandés, which has played well of late, takes the lead as Roberto López scores--0-1. At 63', Oscar Clemente ties it for the Canaries--1-1. And Las Palmas leaves it late--at 87', Marc Cardona makes it 2-1. That's the final score; Las Palmas now leads LaLiga2 by two points over Eibar.

Sat. 21 Jan.

1615 Málaga 1, Burgos 1 #21 hosts #4; Burgos still has the best defensive record in LaLiga2: 13 goals conceded in 23 games. At 43', Lago Junior scores to give Málaga the lead--1-0 at the half in the Rosaleda. Bermejo ties for Burgos at 63'--1-1. And that's the final score.

1615 Ponferradina 0, Eibar 1 Ponfe is top of the drop. Eibar leads LaLiga2, but only by a point over Las Palmas. Scoreless first half in El Toralín, Eibar must win to retake first place, and at 55' Stoichkov gives them the lead--0-1. Eibar holds to win and retakes first place

1830 Granada 2, Ibiza 0 Granada is one point and one place back of the last playoff spot. Ibiza is the farolilo rojo, nine points back of the lowest team not in the drop. At 20', Víctor Díaz gives Granada the lead--1-0. This would be enough to lift Granada to fifth place, but Alavés and Albacete have yet to play . . . Halftime in the Nuevo Los Cármenes. At 81', Bryan makes it 2-0 for Granada. That's the final.

2100 Alavés 3, Racing 0 #5 hosts #18. Racing has climbed out of the drop, but only on GD over Ponfe. Luis Rioja gives Alavés the lead at 13'--1-0; and that's the score at halftime in Mendizorroza. At 66', Salva Sevilla makes it 2-0 as he converts a pk. Sylla makes it 3-0 at 79'. That's the final. Alavés climbs to fourth place; Racing stays above the drop on GD.

Sun. 22 Jan.

1400 Leganés 2, Levante 2 #8 hosts #3. Levante trails the league leaders by just three points. At 28', Campaña gives Levante the lead as he converts a pk--0-1. At 32', José Arnaiz ties it for Lega--1-1. All even at half time. At 63', José Arnaiz scores his second of the game--Lega leads 2-1. Róber Ibáñez ties for Levante at 93'--2-2 the final. Levante is alone in third place.

1615 Cartagena 0, Tenerife 1 Cartagena is ninth, three points shy of the last playoff spot. Tenerife is two points above the drop. Borja Garcés scores for Tenerife at 4'--0-1. Tenerife wins, 0-1.

1615 Sporting 1, Zaragoza 0 Sporting is 15th, just three points above the drop. Zaragoza is one point and one place ahead of Sporting. Queipo gives Sporting the lead at 3'--1-0. And Sporting holds on to win; they climb to 11th place for the moment.

1830 Huesca 1, Oviedo 1 Huesca is in mid-table, five points above the drop. Oviedo trails Huesca only on GD. Oviedo takes the lead at 39', as Koba Lein converts a pk--0-1. Huesca ties at 42'; the scorer was Jorge Pulido.

2100 Lugo 1, Villarreal "B" 2 Lugo is in the drop, four points deep thereinto. The Mini-Sub is three places and three points above the drop. Scoreless first half in the Anxo Carro. At 54', Millán converts a pk to give the Mini-Sub the lead--0-1. At 66', Cuéllar ties for Lugo; but just a minute later, Oscar scores an own goal to give the lead back to the Mini-Sub: 1-2. That's the final. Lugo is now next to last; the Mini-Sub is six points above the drop.

Mon. 23 Jan. 2100 Andorra 0, Albacete 1 Andorra is 10th in LaLiga2, four points back of the last playoff spot. El Alba at present occupies that last playoff spot. Scoreless first half in Andorra. At 75', el Alba takes the lead on a goal by Manu Fuster--0-1. And el Alba holds on to retake sixth place with the win

[AlanK]

Jornada 24 will not be complete until after Monday's Andorra-Albacete game; The Top won't be completely known until after that game, but The Drop is complete after Sunday's games, to wit

18. Racing--------------25 points; +16-21 Next hosts Tenerife.
--------------------------------------
19. Ponferradina---------25 points; +22-31 At Zaragoza.
20. Málaga--------------21 points; +19-29 At Sporting.
21. Lugo----------------21 points; +19-31 At Albacete.
22. Ibiza----------------16 points; +15-37 Hosts Cartagena.

[AlanK]

Jornada 25 begins

Fri. 27 Jan. 2100 Racing 1, Tenerife 1 Racing is above the drop only on GD. Tete is now five points above the drop, in 16th place. Iñigo Vicente gives Racing the lead at 15'--1-0. And still 1-0 at the half in the Sardinero. At 56', Iván Romero ties for Tete--1-1. And that's the final.

Sat. 28 Jan.

1615 Granada 2, Andorra 0 Granada is one point back of the last playoff spot. Andorra is in upper mid-table, seven points above the drop and seven points shy of the last playoff spot. Uzuni scores for Granada at 10' and 13'--2-0 at the half in the Nuevo Los Cármenes. And 2-0 is the final. Granada climbs, for the moment, to third place.

1830 Eibar 0, Leganés 0 Eibar leads LaLiga2, by one point ahead of Las Palmas. Lega is eighth, five points shy of the last playoff spot. Scoreless at the half. Scoreless at full time. Eibar will keep the league lead IF Las Palmas does not beat Huesca later today.

1830 Oviedo 0, Villarreal "B" 1 Oviedo is six points above the drop; they trail the Mini-Sub only on GD. Fer Niño gives the visitors the lead at 8'--0-1. That's the score at halftime. And the Mini-sub climbs to ninth place with the win, as 0-1 holds up.

2100 Las Palmas 1, Huesca 0 The Canaries are in second place, one point back of the pacesetter and four points ahead of third place. Huesca is in id-table, six points above the drop. A win would lift Las Palmas back into the league lead, since Eibar failed to win today. Scoreless first half in the Estadio Gran Canaria. Will Las Palmas manage to grab this opportunity to go back to the top At 48', Las Palmas takes the lead on a goal By Eric--1-0, and first place beckons. And that's how it ends. Las Palmas is guaranteed first place at the end of the jornada; Eibar is guaranteed second place.

Sun. 29 Jan.

1400 Mirandés 1, Alavés 3 Mirandés is 15th, five points above the drop. Alavés is fourth, six points off the league lead. Roberto López gives Mirandés the lead at 36'--1-0. Jason ties for Alavés at 41'--1-1. Halftime. At 59', Luis Rioja gives Alavés the lead--1-2. At 65', Tony Moya makes it 1-3 for the visitors. The win lifts Alavés, at least for the moment, to third place.

1615 Levante 1, Burgos 0 #3 hosts #5; Levante is five points off the league lead and two points ahead of Burgos. Campaña converts a pk at 45'+2' to give Levante the lead at the half--1-0. Levante holds on to win and nails down third place at jornada's end. Burgos will drop to sixth or seventh place.

1830 Albacete 2, Lugo 0 El Alba is in the last playoff spot, seven points shy of the league leaders. Lugo is in the drop, four points and three places back of the lowest team not in the drop. Scoreless first half. At 59', Dubasin gives el Alba the lead--1-0. If el Alba can hold on, they'll be in fifth place at the end of the jornada. And el Alba looks like a winner, as Manu Fuster makes it 2-0 at 75'. Lugo remains next-to-last with the loss; el Alba is indeed in fifth place.

1830 Sporting 0, Málaga 0 Sporting is in mid-table, six points above the drop and eight points back of the last playoff spot. Málaga is in the drop, four points and two places back of the lowest team not in the drop. Scoreless first half in the Molinón. And scoreless second half also.

2100 Ibiza 2, Cartagena 2 Ibiza is the farolillo rojo, nine points back of the lowest team not in the drop. Cartagena is now ninth, six points back of the last playoff spot. Borja Valle makes it 0-2 with goals at 2' and 26'; Cristian Herrera cuts the margin to 1-2 with a goal at 35' for Ibiza. Halftime. At 92', Cristian Herrera scores his second of the game to tie it for Ibiza.

Mon. 30 Jan. 2100 Zaragoza 0, Ponferradina 0 Zaragoza is four points and two places above the drop. Ponfe is top of the drop. The game in the Romareda ends scoreless, so there are no changes in The Drop.

[AlanK]

The Top is known after Sunday's games; The Drop has to wait until after today's Zaragoza-Ponferradina game, to wit

1. Las Palmas--------------48 points; +30-15 Next at Burgos.
2. Eibar-------------------47 points; +28-18 At Alavés in a Basque Derby
-----------------------------------------
3. Levante-----------------44 points; +29-17 At Cartagena.
4. Alavés------------------43 points; +29-22 Hosts Eibar.
5. Albacete----------------42 points; +32-26 At Tenerife.
6. Granada----------------41 points; +30-18 At Villarreal "B".
-----------------------------------------
7. Burgos------------------39 points; +22-15 Hosts Las Palmas.

[AlanK]

The Drop after the completion of Jornada 25

18. Racing-------------26 points; +17-22 Next at Ponfe.
--------------------------------------
19. Ponferradina--------26 points; +22-31 Hosts Racing.
20. Málaga-------------22 points; +19-29 Hosts Oviedo.
21. Lugo---------------21 points; +19-33 Hosts Ibiza.
22. Ibiza---------------17 points; +17-39 At Lugo.

[AlanK]

Jornada 26 of LaLiga2 begins

Fri. 3 Feb. 2100 Málaga 0, Oviedo 1 Málaga is still deep in the drop, two places and four points back of Racing, the lowest team not in the drop. Oviedo is 14th in LaLiga2, five points and five places above the drop. Scoreless first half in the Rosaleda. At 58', Manu Vallejo gives Oviedo the lead--0-1. And the single goal is enough for the win for Oviedo.

Sat. 4 Feb.

1615 Huesca 1, Mirandés 0 Huesca is 14th, five points above the drop and 10 points back of the last playoff spot. Mirandés is 16th, one point and two places back of Huesca. Halftime. At 73', Obeng gives Huesca the lead--1-0. And that's the final.

1615 Leganés 1, Sporting 0 Lega is 8th, six points back of the last playoff spot. Sporting is 12th, three points back of Leganés. At 4', Juan Muñoz gives Lega the lead--1-0. Halftime. And that's also the score at the final whistle.

1830 Tenerife 1, Albacete 0 Tete is 13th, five points above the drop. El Alba has climbed to fifth place, six points shy of the league leader. Enric converts a pk at 12' to give Tete the lead--1-0. And the lead holds through the halftime. And through the final whistle.

2100 Alavés 2, Eibar 0 Not only is this a Basque derby, it features #4 hosting #2. Eibar is one point shy of the leaders; Alavés is four points back of Eibar. Scoreless first half in Mendizorroza. At 70', Villalibre gives Alavés the lead--1-0; if this holds, Alavés will be one point back of Eibar. Villalibre makes it 2-0 at 92'. That's the final

Sun. 5 Feb.

1400 Villarreal "B" 0, Granada 2 The Mini-Sub is 10th, seven points back of Granada, which occupies the last playoff spot. Can Granada improve on the road They are one of the worst road teams in LaLiga2, with a record away from home of 1-3-8 Only last-place Ibiza is worse on the road. Weissman gives Granada the lead at 4'--0-1. At 28', Uzuni makes it 0-2 for Granada. That's the score at the half. And at the final whistle. Granada is now fifth, and could advance another place depending on Levante's result later.

1615 Andorra 0, Zaragoza 1 Andorra is 11th, nine points back of the last playoff spot. Zaragoza is 17th, just two points back of Andorra. Scoreless first half. At 93', Bebé scores to give Zaragoza the win--0-1.

1830 Cartagena 1, Levante 2 Cartagena is ninth, now seven points shy of the last playoff spot. Levante is in third place, four points off the lead and three points back of automatic promotion. Scoreless first half in Cartagonova. Pubill scores at 47' for Levante--0-1; if this holds up, Levante will take over second place on GD over Eibar. Róber Ibáñez makes it 0-2 at 82'. Cartagena cuts the margin to 1-2 as Ortuño scores at 95', but it's too little, to late. Levante is in second place on GD.

1830 Ponferradina 1, Racing 1 Ponfe is top of the drop, back of Racing only on GD. Edu Espiau gives Ponfe the lead at 39', lifting them above the drop if it holds up. Yeray scores for Racing at 79', the point they win is enough to keep them above the drop on GD.

2100 Lugo 0, Ibiza 0 #21 hosts #22 Lugo is five points ahead of Ibiza and five points shy of the lowest team not in the drop. Scoreless tie in the Anxo Carro.

Mon. 6 Feb. 2100 Burgos 0, Las Palmas 0 Burgos has fallen to seventh place, two points shy of the last playoff spot. Las Palmas sits atop LaLiga2, one point ahead of Eibar and four points ahead of Levante. Scoreless first half in El Plantío. And it ends scoreless; Las Palmas tops LaLiga2 by two points over both Levante and Eibar; Burgos is seventh, two points back of the last playoff spot.

[AlanK]

Jornada 26 is complete and in the books--here are The Top and The Drop

1. Las Palmas----------------49 points; +30-15 Next hosts Lugo.
2. Levante------------------47 points; +31-18 Hosts Andorra.
------------------------------------------And the two teams above this line are in automatic promotion territory
3. Eibar--------------------47 points; +28-20 Hosts Cartagena.
4. Alavés-------------------46 points; +31-22 At Zaragoza.
5. Granada-----------------44 points; +32-18 Hosts Tenerife.
6. Albacete-----------------42 points; +32-27 Hosts Málaga.
-------------------------------------------#3-#6 enter promotion playoffs--one winner take all
7. Burgos------------------40 points; +22-15 At Oviedo.
-------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------
18. Racing-----------------27 points; +18-23 Hosts Leganés.
-------------------------------------------And the four teams below this line get the dreaded DROP
19. Ponferradina------------27 points; +23-32 At Ibiza.
20. Málaga-----------------22 points; +19-30 At Albacete.
21. Lugo------------------22 points; +19-33 At Las Palmas.
22. Ibiza------------------18 points; +17-39 Hosts Ponfe.

[AlanK]

Jornada 27 of LaLiga2 begins

Fri. 10 Feb. 2100 Granada 2, Tenerife 0 Granada is in fifth place, five points off the league lead and three points back of automatic promotion. Tenerife has climbed to ninth place in what has been a lackluster season for them; they're eight points back of the last playoff spot. Uzuni converts a pk to give Granada the lead at 7'--1-0. And still 1-0 at the half. A win would lift Granada, for the moment, into second place, albeit on GD. At 83', Uzuni converts another pk--2-0, and Granada looks like a winner. And 2-0 is the final.

Sat. 11 Feb.

1615 Zaragoza 1, Alavés 4 The maños are 14th in LaLiga2, now six points above the drop and nine points back of a playoff spot. Alavés is fourth, one point and two places shy of automatic promotion. At 20', Sylla gives Alavés the lead--0-1. And still 0-1 at the half. At 53', Toni Moya makes it 0-2. At 67', Villalibre would seem to have iced the win--0-3 for Alavés. Bebé cuts the margin to 1-3 at 79'; at 90', Luis Rioja makes it 1-4, and that's the final.

1830 Levante 1, Andorra 0 Levante is in second place, an automatic promotion spot--assuming they're second at season's end, of course. Andorra is 15th, five points above the drop. At 14', Bouldini scores to lift Levante into the league lead, at least for the moment--1-0. And that's the score at halftime. And at full time. Levante leads LaLiga2, but if Las Palmas does not lose to Lugo, coming up nest, the Canaries will be back on top.

1830 Mirandés 2, Villarreal "B" 1 Mirandés is 17th in LaLiga2, three points above the drop. The Mini-Sub is four points and four places above Mirandés. Raúl converts a pk at 45'--1-0 for Mirandés at halftime. Alex Martín makes it 2-0 at 65'. Forés cuts the margin to 2-1 at 83', but Mirandés holds on to win.

2100 Las Palmas 3, Lugo 0 Las Palmas leads LaLiga2 by two points over Levante and Eibar. Lugo is next-to-last, five points back of the lowest team not in the drop. A goal by Pejiño at 30' gives Las Palmas sole possession of first place--1-0 At 45'+1`, Loiodice makes it 2-0 for Las Palmas. At 59', Loren makes it 3-0, and pretty much ices the win for the Canaries. Las Palmas wins, 3-0.

Sun. 12 Feb.

1400 Albacete 3, Málaga 2 El Alba is in the last playoff spot, two points ahead of burgos. Málaga is in the drop, five points shy of the lowest team not in the drop. At 4', Hijinio scores for el Alba; at 16', Lago Junior ties for Málaga--1-1. At 34', Fran Sol gives Málaga the lead--1-2. And thus it stands at the half. Upset in the making At 55', Manu Fuster ties it for el Alba--2-2. At 62', Dubasin puts el Alba back in the lead--3-2. And that's the final. El Alba remains in the last playoff spot.

1615 Oviedo 0, Burgos 1 Oviedo is in mid-table, seven points above the drop and eight points back of the last playoff spot. Burgos is seventh, two points back of the last playoff spot. Scoreless first half. At 51', Atienza gives Burgos the lead--0-1. Burgos wins it and stays in seventh place.

1830 Eibar 0, Cartagena 3 Eibar is in third place, back of automatic promotion only on GD. Cartagena is in mid-table, in a log jam of five teams at 34 points, seven point above the drop. Wow, what a start At 2', Jairo gives Cartagena the lead, and at 5', Borja Valle makes it 0-2. Can Eibar overturn this score Halftime. De Blasis would seem to have iced Cartagena's win--0-3 at 69'. And so it has come to pass.

1830 Sporting 1, Huesca 1 Sporting is 16th, five points above the drop and two points back of 11th place Huesca. Sielva scores at 20' to give Huesca the lead--0-1. At 35', Pedro Díaz scores to tie it for Sporting--1-1. Halftime in the Molinón. And the game ends 1-1.

2100 Ibiza 1, Ponferradina 1 Ibiza is the farolillo rojo, nine points back of the lowest team not in the drop. Ponfe is the top of the drop, back of Racing only on H2H. At 11', Ekain gives Ibiiza the lead, which they still hold after the first half ends--1-0. At 69', Edu Espiau ties it for Ponfe--1-1; this result gives Ponfe a point that takes them above the drop--until Racing plays tomorrow, at least.

Mon. 13 Feb. 2100 Racing 2, Leganés 1 Racing is above the drop only on H2H vs Ponfe. Leganés is a creditable eighth in LaLiga2, four points back of the last playoff spot. At 27', Baturina gives Racing the lead and lifts them two points above the drop. And it's 1-0 for Racing in the Sardinero at the half. At 47', Mboula makes it 2-0 for Racing. At 68', José Arnaiz cuts the margin to 2-1. Racing wins it and climbs two points above the drop.

[AlanK]

The Top is complete after Sunday's games in LaLiga2 from Jornada 27, to wit

1. Las Palmas-------------52 points; +33-15 Next at Leganés.
2. Levante----------------50 points; +32-18 At Ponferradina.
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3. Alavés-----------------49 points; +35-23 Hosts Ibiza.
4. Granada---------------47 points; +34-18 At Huesca,
5. Eibar------------------47 points; +28-23 At Lugo.
6. Albacete---------------45 points; +35-29 At Burgos.
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7. Burgos----------------43 points; +23-15 Hosts Albacete.

The Drop has to wait for today's game (Monday) Racing Santander-Leganés.