By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
THE MARQUEE collision of top Philippines Football League teams Ceres-Negros FC and Kaya FC-Iloilo headlines the league’s midweek offering.
Set for 3:30 p.m. today at the Biñan Football Stadium in Laguna, league-leading Ceres (14-1-0) and second-running Kaya (12-1-2) seek to advance their respective causes and fan their push to the top with a victory in their encounter, the third this season.
Ceres, at the top of the heap with 43 points, has been on a massive roll, winning 14 straight matches and its only blemish a draw on its opening game.
The latest of the wins of the “Busmen” came on Sept. 14, a 7-0 shellacking of Philippine Air Force FC.
Ceres was led by the hat trick of Robert Lopez Mendy with Bienvenido Maranon, OJ Porteria, Mike Ott ad Dennis Villanueva contributing a goal each.
The Busmen had it slow at the beginning but once they got their rhythm collectively they were simply unstoppable.
Ceres has had the number of Kaya this season so far, taking their first two matches.
It came from behind to clinch a 2-1 win last July 10 at the PFF National Training Center before securing a 1-0 victory with mostly 10 men last Aug. 3 at the Aboitiz Pitch.
But despite having beaten Kaya in previous occasions this season, Ceres coach Risto Vidakovic said there is no resting against a team like Kaya, which he describes as “special.”
“Kaya is a special team, they are our strongest opponent in the league. I think the players will give everything in this game because it is crucial to win the league again,” said Mr. Vidakovic, whose wards are the two-time defending PFL champions.
Kaya, for its part, is second with 37 points and is on a five-game winning streak.
It defeated Global Cebu FC, 5-1, on Sept. 7 with Jordan Mintah’s hat trick and goals from Darryl Roberts and Alfred Osei accounting for its game tally.
The Ceres-Kaya match will be shown live on pfltv.ph and on Facebook Live via the PFL page.
Meanwhile, also seeing action today are Stallion Laguna FC (8-4-4) and Mendiola FC 1991 (3-3-10) at 4 p.m. at the Aboitiz Pitch in Lipa City, Batangas.
