I-League final day LIVE: Four-way battle for title between Minerva Punjab FC, Mohun Bagan, NEROCA FC and East Bengal

The 2017-18 I-League season will head towards the final showdown on Thursday with four teams — Minerva Punjab FC, Mohun Bagan, NEROCA FC and East Bengal — fighting for the title. At Panchkula’s Tau Devi Lal Stadium, Minerva will host relegation-threatened Churchill Brothers FC secure with the knowledge that they are the only team in the mix who do not have to depend on the result of other matches if they secure all three points against the visitors.

The I-League trophy

While an outright win will guarantee them the title, even a draw or a loss may still see them through provided the other two outcomes in Kolkata and Kozhikode go accordingly.

It will also be a do-or-die game for Churchill Brothers as they battle for survival in the top division of Indian football.

Meanwhile, football giants East Bengal and debutants NEROCA FC will look to secure a victory at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan while hoping other results go in their favour in order to capture the title.

East Bengal are desperate to end their 14-year title drought, having last won the tournament in the 2003-04 season, when it was called the National Football League (NFL). Placed fourth in the points table with 30 points, East Bengal will have to first beat NEROCA and then hope table-toppers Minerva Punjab FC (32 points) don't triumph.

Arch-rivals Mohun Bagan, placed third with 30 points, must also not win at Gokulam Kerala FC as they have a better head-to-head record against East Bengal.

The equation is slightly simpler for second-placed NEROCA (31 points), who must ensure they first emerge victorious against East Bengal and then hope Minerva do not win against Churchill.