AIFF Super Cup | NorthEast United fouled Anirudh Thapa badly, says John Gregory
Chennayin FC coach John Gregory has accused NorthEast United players of targeting their young midfielder Anirudh Thapa and consequently fouling him numerous times. The Marina Machans came back from a goal down to win 2-1 against the Highlanders to book a place in AIFF Super Cup semi-finals.
Since Chennaiyin led NorthEast with a late first-half goal by Anirudh Thapa, the match had turned into a battlefield with the NEUFC players going too physical. Numerous fouls were committed in the second half making it very difficult for the referee to handle.Â
After CFC eventually emerged victorious from the tightly contested game, manager Gregory has pointed it out especially the ones of their star midfielder Thapa, who was continuously fouled by Girik Khosla and Jose
“I don't like to see players getting cards. But they (NorthEast) did seem to target Thapa. Every time he got the ball, he got fouled badly. I need him protected, you expect the officials to protect your players, I don't think they did that enough. Chris Herd made one tackle and got a yellow card immediately. I was a little bit angry," said Gregory, reported Goal.com.
Thapa was also the man of the match for his one assist and a goal apart from some great defensive mark and Gregory couldn’t stop praising the 21-year-old midfielder. "We have tried to look after Thapa as well as we can. He is our player, contracted to us for a long time. I want to try and look after him,” said Gregory.Â
“In the last couple of years, he has been involved in the senior team, U-23 and with us. We are just trying to manage him in the right way. He is a better player now than he was a year ago. He has got to keep improving," the 64-
Chennaiyin FC will be facing ATK in the semifinals in a mouthwatering clash and after a disappointing league run, Gregory has stated that his players are fighting hard to salvage something out of it.
"We still have got lots of problems but we are coping with it. We got our backsides kicked [in the Super Cup] last season and we came in wanting to give it our best. We are focused on it. The players have been working hard and encouraging one another. We are embarrassed by the season we had. By being successful in two cup competitions, we give us a much better feeling. We had to fight really hard tonight. Overall, we deserved the win," said Gregory.
