Five teams battling for the final two spots in Apertura Zone B | OneFootball

The 2026 Professional League Apertura Tournament is nearing its decisive stage, and this weekend the 16 teams for the round of 16 will be confirmed, with two spots still up for grabs in Zone B. Those places will be decided among Racing, Huracán, Barracas Central, Tigre, and Sarmiento. Find out what each team needs to claim one of those remaining tickets.

On Saturday, El Guapo kicked off the final showdown by hosting Banfield at the Claudio “Chiqui” Tapia stadium. Rubén Darío Insua’s team currently sits in eighth place (21 points and a goal difference of 0) after losing 2-1 to El Taladro, complicating its qualification, which would have been secured with a win.

With the defeat, Barracas Central must now wait for La Academia (20) to lose to Huracán (21) at El Cilindro, and for neither Tigre (19) nor Sarmiento (19) to win their respective matches.

On Sunday starting at 4:00 p.m., four matches will be played simultaneously involving the other four contenders (as well as Gimnasia (LP) vs. Argentinos Juniors, who have already qualified but whose final position in the group is not yet confirmed), which will settle the question of the last two spots in the round of 16.

All eyes will be on the match between Racing (9th, 20 points and +2) and Huracán (7th, 21 points and +4). El Globo controls its own destiny, since a win would guarantee its place in the final stage of the tournament. If they draw, Diego Martínez’s side will qualify as long as Tigre does not win and Sarmiento does not win by seven goals. If they lose, they will need neither El Matador nor El Verde to win in order to go through.

La Academia enters the decisive final round knowing that if it beats Huracán, it will be part of the final stage regardless of what happens on the other fields, while a defeat would leave it out of the next round. If it draws with El Globo, it will only reach the round of 16 if neither Tigre nor Sarmiento wins its respective match.

Tigre (10th and with +3) will have to visit Rosario Central at the Gigante de Arroyito knowing it does not depend on itself to reach the round of 16. After El Guapo’s defeat, Dabove’s team only needs to beat El Canalla, regardless of what happens between Racing and Huracán, since whatever the result, it does not affect its equation.

Lastly comes Sarmiento (11th and -3), which absolutely must beat Belgrano in Córdoba. Then it needs Tigre to lose or draw against Rosario Central at the Gigante de Arroyito (if Diego Dabove’s team wins, Sarmiento would have to win by a seven-goal margin). Similar to Tigre, any result between Racing and Huracán does not affect its push for the round of 16.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.