The fight to remain in Argentina's top flight has entered its decisive stage with one certainty and one threat still unresolved. Estudiantes de Río Cuarto have already been relegated after finishing at the bottom of the average-points table. The second relegation place will come from the 2026 annual standings, where Aldosivi currently occupy the danger position while Deportivo Riestra protect a narrow advantage.
The regulations establish two separate routes to Primera Nacional. One team goes down through the lowest coefficient across the seasons included in the calculation, and another through last place in the 2026 annual table. When the same club sits bottom of both rankings, as Estudiantes do, the second relegation applies to the annual table's next-lowest side, preventing one campaign from absorbing both places.
Estudiantes completed thirty matches with 14 points and an average of 0.467, figures that made their situation irreversible before the regular phase ended. The Río Cuarto team also sit last in the annual standings. That combination explains why relegation has already been confirmed and why attention has shifted to the clubs directly above them, which still have the other outcome to settle.
Aldosivi have collected 19 points from thirty appearances and rank second from bottom in the annual table. Deportivo Riestra have 23, four more, and provide the immediate target the Mar del Plata club must catch. The gap keeps the contest alive but leaves little room for error: every draw or defeat carries exceptional weight when only a limited number of opportunities remain.
The average table also places Aldosivi 29th, with 52 points from 62 matches and a coefficient of 0.839. However, the relegation assigned through that route already belongs to Estudiantes, whose number is lower. The decisive calculation for the second place therefore lies in the annual total rather than in an isolated comparison of averages.
Other clubs near the bottom retain wider cushions. Central Córdoba have 26 annual points, Platense 30, Atlético Tucumán 31 and Banfield 32, while Riestra form Aldosivi's closest survival line. The picture can still move through the pending matches, so every assessment must remain provisional until all teams complete the regular phase and the standings become final.
The closing stretch requires a clear distinction between what is confirmed and what remains probable. Estudiantes de Río Cuarto will play in Primera Nacional in 2027; Aldosivi currently occupy the second relegation place but are not yet formally condemned. Their next challenge is to turn mathematical pressure into points while hoping for favourable results, as Riestra attempt to preserve the margin keeping them safe.
