Jeje Lalpekhlua scored a brace and Dhanpal Ganesh got the other goal as the host won 4-1 on aggregate. It set itself up for a date with southern rival Bengaluru FC in the grand finale. 

CFC head coach John Gregory was pleased to have kept faith with Jeje despite the forward’s recent goal drought. “He (Jeje) has always played the role of playing down the middle,” he explained. 

“It can be a lonely job, and sometimes when you don’t score, you don’t get any recognition of taking part in the game. But he has been working really hard. He put in so much tonight that he got a little bit of a cramp. But I supported him, and I always wanted him in the team. I knew he would always get a chance. And he just went out there and got two goals.” 

Gregory explained the reason behind Chennaiyin’s solid display in such a crucial match. “Just like Goa put a lot of faith in their offensive play, we put a lot of faith in our defence,” he revealed. “To get into our team, you have to have the ability to work hard and have the energy to run for 90 minutes. 

The fitness levels our players have got enables us to play that way.” However, Gregory did admit that his team survived an initial scare. “We aren’t probably as technically gifted as Goa, and they pinned us back in the early stages,” conceded the 63-year-old.