Title contender East Bengal takes on defending champion Minerva Punjab FC at the Tau Devi Lal Stadium in Haryana on Sunday, with the visitor’s hopes for a maiden I-League title renewed after Churchill Brothers defeated table toppers Chennai City FC on Friday.
After 17 games, Minerva Punjab is ninth in the table with as many points while East Bengal is second with 36 points, four points behind Chennai City having played one game less.
East Bengal has been in good form in 2019, with just one loss – against Chennai City, and will look to continue its winning run and close the gap at the top. A win against Minerva Punjab will take it just a point shy of Chennai City, taking the championship fight to the final day.
While a defeat for East Bengal here will hand Chennai City its maiden I-League title.
“We are more eager to win now as we have a realistic chance to win the championship. This match is very important for us. Our team is playing very good this season, our team is improving everyday. We want to continue with the team and try to win the important match,” said East Bengal coach Alejandro Menendez.
Defending champion Minerva Punjab has had a dismal campaign this season, having scored only 9 goals and conceding 15, but coach Sachin Badadhe sounded upbeat ahead of the game.
“We are pretty confident about tomorrow's game. We are ready to go for all three points. In the last game, Chennai lost the game so it can be the same condition with East Bengal tomorrow. The training is good and we are hoping for a positive result,” he said.
Minerva defeated East Bengal 2-0 in the reverse fixture in Kolkata earlier this season and will look to complete the double in front of its home crowd.
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