After a long wait, the Rizal Memorial Stadium will be the home of the postseason for men's football, as the Final Four is slated to take place on its artificial pitch this Sunday afternoon. Kicking it off is the Ateneo-La Salle rivalry at 2pm, which will then be followed by FEU-UP. Both games today will be telecast LIVE on ABS-CBN Sports and Action.
It took the league up until the final set of matches to determine who will face who in the semifinals. In fact, it took the 87th minute of the last match to even determine the final entrant.
Left fullback Kendall Colet booked Ateneo's passage into the Final Four with that late strike, giving the Blue Booters the much needed three points to overtake NU and finish in fourth place with 25 points after the eliminations.
The victory however came at a cost, as team skipper Mikko Mabanag was booked for a yellow card during the match, leading to a one-game suspension due to card accumulation and forcing him to miss the game versus La Salle.
Mabanag has been the offensive centerpiece for Ateneo, with his knack for scoring opportunities from set pieces, whether it be goals or assists. That kind of playmaking will sorely be missed on the field at Rizal Memorial.
Without the Manila Jeepney winger, head coach JP Merida will have to rely on the three other remaining players from the title-winning squad of Season 75: center back Kokoy Marcelino and midfielders Leo Carlo Liay, and Emmanuel Paredes, for leadership in guiding this young squad.
In contrast, La Salle completed its eliminations campaign without a loss, clinching the top spot with a 1-0 win over NU to finish with 32 points built on nine wins and five draws.
The Green Booters pride themselves on a solid defense and midfield, anchored by center back Nico Villacin, wingback Matthew Nierras, and the playmaking of Nathan Alquiros.
That strength in the back line will be tested though, with Noel Brago also incurring a card-related suspension that will force him to miss this match along with Mabanag.
In addition, Hans Smit has not yet fully figured out on attempting to fill the hole left by Gelo Diamante up front, with the striker from Davao suffering a clavicle injury that kept him out for most of the second round and probably for the rest of the season. It has been a collective effort between Christian Zubiri, Chuckie Uy, Yoshi Koizumi and even Villacin to be that guy.
Reflecting the magnitude of the rivalry, both teams battled to draws in their elimination meetings, with a goalless tie back in January 11, followed by a 1-1 deadlock on February 1.
In the other matchup, defending champions FEU goes against UP in a highly-anticipated rematch of last season's finals.
The Tamaraws seek to make a return trip to the finals with a slightly different look, changing from their tiki-taka play into a slightly more direct approach.
They also had to deal with a couple of injury issues, most notably to MVP Paolo Bugas. The midfielder suffered a knee injury that forced him to miss action in the second round. However, he recovered in time to be able to briefly play in their 5-0 thrashing of UE as a substitute.
In spite of the adjustments, Kim Chul Su's side remains strong thanks to the veteran attack unit of skipper Eric Giganto, Jesus Melliza, and Arnel Amita. The trio by themselves combined to score 39 goals in the eliminations.
UP, on the other hand, has had the luxury of continuity under the leadership of Anto Gonzales in the sidelines.
The Maroons did not lose anyone from last year's roster due to graduation, relying on their battle-tested core of Jinggoy Valmayor, Michael Simms, Vincent Aguilar, Daniel Gadia, Kobe Ochoa, Albert Yatco, and Ace Villanueva complemented by youngsters Patxi Santos, Ian Clariño, Lou Rafanan and Rogie Maglinas.
Both matches in the eliminations proved to be exciting meetings, with UP dealing FEU one of its two losses this season, a 3-1 victory last January 22, while their 3-3 draw last February 5 was said to be one of the best football games this season.
The winners of the matches will face off in the final on March 8, also at Rizal Memorial.
It took the league up until the final set of matches to determine who will face who in the semifinals. In fact, it took the 87th minute of the last match to even determine the final entrant.
Left fullback Kendall Colet booked Ateneo's passage into the Final Four with that late strike, giving the Blue Booters the much needed three points to overtake NU and finish in fourth place with 25 points after the eliminations.
The victory however came at a cost, as team skipper Mikko Mabanag was booked for a yellow card during the match, leading to a one-game suspension due to card accumulation and forcing him to miss the game versus La Salle.
Mabanag has been the offensive centerpiece for Ateneo, with his knack for scoring opportunities from set pieces, whether it be goals or assists. That kind of playmaking will sorely be missed on the field at Rizal Memorial.
Without the Manila Jeepney winger, head coach JP Merida will have to rely on the three other remaining players from the title-winning squad of Season 75: center back Kokoy Marcelino and midfielders Leo Carlo Liay, and Emmanuel Paredes, for leadership in guiding this young squad.
In contrast, La Salle completed its eliminations campaign without a loss, clinching the top spot with a 1-0 win over NU to finish with 32 points built on nine wins and five draws.
The Green Booters pride themselves on a solid defense and midfield, anchored by center back Nico Villacin, wingback Matthew Nierras, and the playmaking of Nathan Alquiros.
That strength in the back line will be tested though, with Noel Brago also incurring a card-related suspension that will force him to miss this match along with Mabanag.
In addition, Hans Smit has not yet fully figured out on attempting to fill the hole left by Gelo Diamante up front, with the striker from Davao suffering a clavicle injury that kept him out for most of the second round and probably for the rest of the season. It has been a collective effort between Christian Zubiri, Chuckie Uy, Yoshi Koizumi and even Villacin to be that guy.
Reflecting the magnitude of the rivalry, both teams battled to draws in their elimination meetings, with a goalless tie back in January 11, followed by a 1-1 deadlock on February 1.
In the other matchup, defending champions FEU goes against UP in a highly-anticipated rematch of last season's finals.
The Tamaraws seek to make a return trip to the finals with a slightly different look, changing from their tiki-taka play into a slightly more direct approach.
They also had to deal with a couple of injury issues, most notably to MVP Paolo Bugas. The midfielder suffered a knee injury that forced him to miss action in the second round. However, he recovered in time to be able to briefly play in their 5-0 thrashing of UE as a substitute.
In spite of the adjustments, Kim Chul Su's side remains strong thanks to the veteran attack unit of skipper Eric Giganto, Jesus Melliza, and Arnel Amita. The trio by themselves combined to score 39 goals in the eliminations.
UP, on the other hand, has had the luxury of continuity under the leadership of Anto Gonzales in the sidelines.
The Maroons did not lose anyone from last year's roster due to graduation, relying on their battle-tested core of Jinggoy Valmayor, Michael Simms, Vincent Aguilar, Daniel Gadia, Kobe Ochoa, Albert Yatco, and Ace Villanueva complemented by youngsters Patxi Santos, Ian Clariño, Lou Rafanan and Rogie Maglinas.
Both matches in the eliminations proved to be exciting meetings, with UP dealing FEU one of its two losses this season, a 3-1 victory last January 22, while their 3-3 draw last February 5 was said to be one of the best football games this season.
The winners of the matches will face off in the final on March 8, also at Rizal Memorial.
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