Chennaiyin FC beat FC Goa 1 – 0 in Hero Indian Super League (ISL) 2017-18 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Goa on Thursday. Inigo Caldeon was at the right place at the right time to secure the win for the 2015 Hero ISL champions in a match where the visitors rode their luck often. The win places Chennaiyin third in the standings and addressing the media during the post-match press conference was their head coach John Gregory.

He began by praising the opponents for their stellar and tireless performance on the night. “I think it was pretty evident that the home team are an outstanding footballing team,” Gregory stated. “If we were to try and go chase the ball, we would be running around all night trying to get it because they keep the ball very well. From their goalkeeper to their defenders, they have some outstanding footballers. They pass the ball pretty well, they support each other all over the pitch.”

The Englishman then shared the strategy Chennai adopted to get the better of the Gaurs. “Basically, we were quite happy to sit back in our half for the majority of the game and hope that we just get something on a counter-attack maybe or from a set-piece,” he revealed. “Because if we try to match Goa man for man, they play football possibly better than us. They are possibly one of the best football teams in the Hero ISL. So, we just had to make sure we try and keep a clean sheet. We have done it twice against Pune this season, and at Jamshedpur. We managed to win at Bengaluru. So, we have won at some really difficult places this year.”

The 55-year-old was all-praise for his players who worked their heart out to grind out the result. “I’ll put nothing past my group of players,” Gregory said. “They are a fantastic bunch. They work exceptionally hard for one another as we saw tonight. There is a tremendous team spirit amongst them. Everybody plays a part. And the boys that came off the bench did a good job for us well.”

He, however, did admit that his team was lucky to get the win. “We rode our luck a little, but we got away with it,” Gregory said. “We haven’t had a great deal of luck in the last few weeks. So, maybe it came back to us a little tonight.”

The goal was credited to Inigo Calderon and Gregory highlighted the important role he has played for the team. “He (Calderon) was there (to score), that’s it,” he said. “He enjoys getting forward into the penalty area at the other end. He’s scored three goals for us this season, including one against Goa in our home match early on this season.”