I-League 2017-18: Season ratings of all I-League clubs

#2 NEROCA FC (8/10)

The mix of experience and youth helped them this season

The best performers this season for me has been NEROCA FC. The newly promoted side from the I League 2nd division made a statement to all those people who were talking about Manipur’s demise as a footballing powerhouse in India.

Most of the Indian players in NEROCA were local Manipuri boys.Their mix of experience with youthful exuberance paid off brilliantly as they showcased eye-catching football throughout the season.

Their fans made it a daunting task for opposing players to play in Imphal by filling the stands in numbers, and overall as a product NEROCA FC has been the best thing that the I-League had to offer this season.

Their victory against Kerala Blasters in the Super Cup added another feather in their cap, and it showed the ability of their coach Gift Raikhan to turn around games.

Finishing as the I-League’s runners-up and reaching the quarter-final of the Super Cup, even the staunchest of NEROCA fans couldn’t have dreamt of a debut season like this one.

#1 Minerva Punjab FC (9/10)

No one could have predicted Minerva would have won the title at first

Grit, Determination, Hard work, and Hunger for success, is what one can learn from Minerva’s success this season.

If at the start of the season anyone in their right minds predicted that Minerva were going to be champions then either he/she was lying or they were daydreaming, but now everyone is still trying to get a grasp of what really happened in the I-League.

Minerva's approach this season was really professional, as their strict coaching regime under Khogen Singh and hands-on approach by owner Ranjit Bajaj ensured that Minerva had always been a step ahead of the rest.

Their emphasis on statistical analysis of opponents and physical fitness paid dividends at the end of the season. Adding to those factors were their foreign signings, as the likes of Chencho and Kassim Aidara took the league by storm.

Minerva’s Super cup sojourn wasn’t so rosy like their I-League campaign, as they were eliminated by Jamshedpur FC in their first game in the tournament.

Their unwillingness to play in the tournament also could have had a part in their lacklustre performance in the Cup tie.