Coach Gregory satisfied after Jeje’s brace

“He held the ball up well and was rewarded. I am satisfied with what he did on the pitch and the winner was the best of the lot in my regard,” said Chennaiyin FC head coach John Gregory after the win. 

The Briton also pointed out the change of role for the Indian international in his system of play. He added, “Under Marco (Materazzi), he played as an out and out striker. And he also had various other players around him. He is playing slightly different for me than he used to do with Marco. We make him work a little bit harder, which is usually not easy for a centre forward.” 

Asked if he had any special word with Jeje regarding his form, he replied, “I spoke to him on the eve of the game just like I do with every other member of the 25-man squad. There were no specific plans which were directed towards him.”

Ahead of the clash, Gregory had remained unconcerned about the star striker’s inability to influence games with his goals. 

“I am not worried about his goal-scoring form. He worked exceptionally hard against FC Pune City but didn’t get the services he wanted from his teammates. I am sure he will start scoring goals once the season progresses. I am happy as long as my other players are scoring,” said the former Aston Villa manager in the pre-match press conference. 

The 26-year-old striker broke the shackles for the home side in the 65th minute after a header from skipper Henrique Sereno deflected off the post and generously fell in his path. He doubled his tally towards the business end of the contest after a punch from ATK goalkeeper Debjit Majumdar helped him slot home a sitter to complete his double. 

Jeje is currently third in the list of all-time ISL goal scorers, amassing a tally of 15 goals in his 37 games. He requires three more to surpass ‘Pocket dynamo’ John Stiven Mendoza’s total of 17 goals. Kerala Blasters forward Iain Hume leads the pack with 23 goals.