I-League: Neroca FC to take on defending champs Minerva Punjab

On a roll after three wins on the trot, a confident Neroca FC would start as favourites when they take on defending champions Minerva Punjab in their I-League football clash here on Sunday.

After a stuttering start in their I-League campaign, Neroca bounced back into the reckoning with three wins in their last three matches -- two at home and one away -- to occupy the third spot with 14 points from eight matches. A win on Sunday will consolidate Neroca's position at the top three and keep them in the hunt for the title as the I-League nears halfway stage.

Minerva, on the other hand, suffered a loss at home against Mohun Bagan in their previous game and their goal-scoring woes still refused to go away. The Punjab side is currently at seventh spot with 12 points from nine games.

While Neroca looks a rejuvenated side since the return from injury of Japanese talisman Katsumi Yusa, Minerva's Irish coach Paul Munster is yet to find a right combination of his players for the season.

Neroca's Spanish coach Manuel Fraile has made some key decisions along the way, two of them is ensuring that the experienced Singham Subhash Singh and Lalit Thapa are back in the mix. With the inspirational Yusa coming back, Nigerian striker Felix Chidi also seemed to have got back his goal-scoring touch.

"We must keep the momentum. We need to be steady too. Support of the fans has also played an important role. The important aspect is to look at the opponent also. From January, we will be playing more away matches. We will be playing with a tough team who are the champions. We are in a very good position now," Fraile said.

Minerva has played about 24 players in their nine games so far and is yet to zero in on an ideal attacking partnership for William Opoku.

The Ghanaian has had to partner the likes of Manandeep, Sabeeth, Donatus Edafe, Alexandre Kouassi, Yu Kuboki, Nongdamba Naorem, Dilliram Sanyasi and Makan Winkle Chothe at various stages of their campaign so far unlike last year when Chencho and Bali Gagandeep were mostly by his side.

With six goals scored so far and two of those coming in a single match off the head of centre-back Lancine Toure, it's clear that none of those attacking combinations has worked for Munster so far.

"Our first few matches have been relevant as they were home games but this is an away game. We are expecting better performances and creation of more opportunities to score a goal. Preparation has been really tight as we look forward to the game. We have been looking towards the Neroca match for a positive result," Munster said.