Clube Desportivo Cova da Piedade is a football club established in the parish of Cova da Piedade, municipality of Almada, Portugal. The club merged with B-SAD, in an attempt of the former to retain their position currently in Liga 3, the third tier of Portuguese football, but they weren't granted license and were relegated to distrital championships.[1]

Cova da Piedade
Full nameClube Desportivo da Cova da Piedade
Nickname(s)Rapazes de Azul-Grená
Founded1947; 77 years ago (1947)
GroundEstádio Municipal José Martins Vieira, Cova da Piedade
Capacity3,000
ChairmanPaulo Veiga
ManagerJoão Sousa
LeagueDistrital Championship
2020–21Liga Portugal 2, 11th of 18 (forcibly relegated)
Websitehttp://www.cdcovapiedade.pt/

History

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Clube Desportivo Cova da Piedade was founded on 28 January 1947, resulting from the merge between União Piedense Futebol Clube, founded on 9 April 1914, and Sporting Clube Piedense. Cova da Piedade's current president is Paulo Veiga.

Promotion to LigaPro

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On 30 April 2016, Cova da Piedade were promoted for the first time ever to the professional second-tier (all previous presences in the second-tier were prior to the creation of Segunda Divisão de Honra in 1990) after beating Angrense 2–1, confirming the first place on Campeonato de Portugal, South Zone, with two more matches still to play. They won the third-tier championship title on 5 June 2016, against North Zone winners Vizela.

Relegation to Liga 3

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Cova da Piedade failed to produce valid licensing documentation to compete in the 2021–22 season of the Liga Portugal 2, so they were punished by the Portuguese Professional Football League with direct relegation to the Liga 3.[2]

Merger with B-SAD

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On 7 March 2023, the boards of Cova da Piedade and B-SAD (an offshoot of C.F. Os Belenenses) announced a merger, taking the league position of B-SAD while retaining the name and facilities and Cova da Piedade. Cova da Piedade had not played senior football since being expelled from Liga Portugal 2 in 2021, while B-SAD had been renting the Estádio Nacional from the state while using distant facilities for training.[3] In June, B-SAD was relegated from the second tier after a 2–1 playoff defeat to Länk FC Vilaverdense, meaning that the fused club would begin life in Liga 3.[4]

Stadium

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Cova da Piedade play their matches at Estádio Municipal José Martins Vieira (named after the former President of the Municipality of Almada) and has a capacity for 3,000 spectators.[citation needed] The stadium has natural turf.

Current squad

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As of 26 January 2022

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK   POR Sandro Cabral
2 DF   POR Luís Marcelino
3 DF   POR João Gomes
4 DF   POR Fábio Santos
7 MF   POR Iko Caetano
8 MF   CPV Fábio Arcanjo
9 FW   POR Vicente Caldeira
11 MF   POR Rui Batalha
13 GK   POR Tomás Carvalho
14 DF   POR Pedro Carvalho
15 FW   URU Juan San Martín
16 MF   BRA Caio Carioca
No. Pos. Nation Player
17 FW   ZAM Kenneth Kalunga
20 MF   POR Tiago Baptista
21 DF   GNB Assane Baldé
22 FW   POR Hélio Vaz
23 DF   GNB Califo Baldé
29 FW   POR Valter Zacarias
30 FW   POR Diogo David
33 DF   BRA Sandro
41 DF   CHN Victor Wang
44 DF   CPV Yaka Medina
47 DF   POR Celsinho
88 MF   POR Pedro Pinto

Honours

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League and cup history

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Season Tier Competition Pos. Pl. W D L GS GA P Portuguese Cup Portuguese League Cup Notes
2014–15 3 Campeonato de Portugal (league) 3 18 8 4 6 17 15 28 Round 3 Not eligible
2015–16 Campeonato de Portugal (league) 1 18 10 5 3 23 13 35 Round 4 Not eligible Promoted
2016–17 2 Portuguese Second Division 16 42 14 11 17 45 60 53 Round 4 2nd qualifying round
2017–18 Portuguese Second Division 9 38 14 9 15 42 45 51 Quarter-finals 2nd qualifying round
Fusion from B-SAD
2023–24 5 Distrital Championship

References

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  1. ^ "Oficial: Cova da Piedade fora das competições da FPF".
  2. ^ "Inscrição do Cova da Piedade foi rejeitada pela Liga: Vilafranquense convidado para o seu lugar". zerozero.pt (in Portuguese). 21 June 2021.
  3. ^ "Cova da Piedade e B SAD unem-se para subir já na próxima época" [Cova da Piedade and B-SAD join together to go up next season] (in Portuguese). Rádio Renascença. 7 March 2023. Retrieved 12 June 2023.
  4. ^ Pombo, Diogo (11 June 2023). "Cinco anos após a separação do Belenenses e antes de 'morrer', a B SAD é despromovida do futebol profissional" [Five years after separation from Belenenses and before 'dying', B-SAD is relegated from professional football]. Expresso (in Portuguese). Retrieved 12 June 2023.
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