Chennaiyin FC will be desperate to notch up their first win of the 2018-19 campaign after their dismal start when they take on NorthEast United FC at home in Chennai on Thursday. John Gregory and his men will be hoping to fix all the loopholes and claim maximum points against the Highlanders, which will be crucial in gaining the momentum required to defend their Hero Indian Super League (ISL) title. Ahead of this encounter, the hosts head coach Gregory was present at the pre-match press conference to speak to the media.

The Englishman commenced by sharing some great words about his players, despite a disappointing start. “We’ve lost two matches, I can’t deny it. We lost two games and it’s not a good start for us. The same start we had in 2015 when we won it, there’s all those analogies that you can draw. The fact is that we had an unbelievable amount of efforts in both matches from the players and I cannot fault them from that. When you’ve got players that give efforts in the way that my players did, results will surely change. I have looked at all the stats and at everything we did. In both games, the effort was outstanding. We just lacked quality in the final third of the pitch. Also, we made a couple of mistakes at the back which we are not renowned for.”

When asked about Jeje Lalpekhlua’s lack of form in front of goal at present, the 64-year-old backed his star striker and predicted that the Mizo Sniper would end the season with a flourish. “Jeje went through a very tough time at one stage, towards the end of last season. He came out here in the playoff and scored two goals in the second leg of the semi-final. He’s got that capability, you know. It’s not something that I’m going to drum into him. We talk about it, obviously, but to just stay relaxed and focused. Sometimes when you talk about it constantly, it becomes a bigger problem than it actually is. He’s a goal scorer, that’s what he does. He’s a front player, his job is scoring goals. He hasn’t scored one yet, but I’m sure, given time, I look over the rest of the season and he’s got at least 10-12 goals in him. As for strikers, once they get their first goal everything normally follows in line.”

On being questioned about whether he will be making changes in his starting lineup, Gregory commented, “Possibly, yes. Obviously, I’m not giving anything away at the moment. I have options, obviously. I’ve got 10 or 12 boys that are ready to go straight in at any given stage. There are many young boys, obviously, inexperienced boys. It might not be the game for one or two of them, but nevertheless, I’ve got some senior boys that are desperate to get on the field and give us our first win. I’ll let you know tomorrow night.”

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