MANILA – Kaya Futbol Club Iloilo aims to keep its mastery of Mendiola 1991 FC when the two football clubs square off in the 2019 Philippines Football League today at the Aboitiz Pitch in Lipa, Batangas.
The Iloilo-Mendiola tussle is set at 4 p.m. to be followed by the matchup between two-time defending League champions Ceres-Negros FC and Green Archers United FC at 7 p.m.
The Ilonggos is at second and remains in striking distance for the League title with its 43 points, on 14 wins, one draw and three losses, behind Ceres-Negros that had 50 points.
Kaya Iloilo head coach Noel Marcaida reminded his players not to take Mendiola lightly as the latter was coming off a convincing 4-1 victory over the Philippine Air Force FC on Sunday.
“It’s important to have control of the tempo from start to finish, especially as they (Mendiola) are coming from a commanding victory,” Marcaida said. “It’s important that we stay sharp and build momentum heading into our busy run of fixtures.”
Today’s encounter will be the third time that the two teams face each other this season. Kaya Iloilo first defeated Mendiola on June 19 to the tune of 6-3 before following it up with a 5-0 blanking on July 27.
“We can’t allow ourselves to concede an early goal to Mendiola like what happened in our first encounter,” Marcaida said. “Also, they are very good at defending deep and breaking very quickly when they recover possession.”/PN
