Gregory emphasises discipline, commitment

Gregory replaced Italian Marco Materazzi after Chennaiyin FC, which won the second season in 2015, endured a disappointing campaign last year finishing seventh in the eight-team league.

The Englishman said he was surprised to see the Indian Super League (ISL) grow from strength to strength in the last three editions. “The league is growing quickly and the interest in the league is worldwide. Replacing Marco Materazzi, who has done an amazing job here, is huge. Hopefully, I can bring success to this team in the coming seasons,” Gregory said. 

Divulging details on his coaching philosophy, Gregory said he values total commitment and discipline. “A player must give everything after wearing the Chennaiyin shirt. I am a big team player. Anybody who gives 100 percent to the game will get my complete support. I expect discipline, players to conduct themselves properly on the pitch, not involving with the referees or the opposition. Football is a hard game to win matches with 11 players and with 10 or nine, it is even more difficult to win and I expect my players to understand,” he explained. 

With all the teams lining up for the ISL draft on Sunday, Chennaiyin will be able to pick their first player in the fourth round as they have retained four players with one U-21 developmental player (Jerry Lalrinzuala) has an international cap. However, Gregory does not see it as a disadvantage. “I think we actually have an advantage because we have four players already which is four more than what Delhi Dynamos have. Also, I have assistant coach Syed Sabir Pasha with me, who is an integral part of the team management, who will help me pick Indian players,” Gregory noted. 

The coach welcomed the new rule changes this year where a team must play with six domestic and five foreign players. “The Indian players have found fewer chances when they were pitted against a foreign player. It can be daunting for domestic players to prove themselves against them. I am impressed with the change of playing an extra domestic player. That’s a positive step. Ultimately, it will improve the quality of the national team. We need to play more domestic players in leagues like these,” Gregory added. 

Team owner Abhishek Bachchan said Gregory ticked all boxes of a match-winning coach and said he was happy to have the former Aston Villa coach in Chennaiyin’s ranks. “We wanted a technically proficient coach. We (Vita and I) were very impressed with John. He has managed a lot of teams and he is also interested in helping at the grassroot level, which concurs with the team management’s ideologies too,” Abhishek remarked.