The Serie A club needed extra time to fire an energetic Modena in what was a substitute match in the Coppa Italia
Okereke opened the scoring when Cremonese sealed a 4-2 win over their Serie B visitors in the second round of the Coppa Italia on Thursday night.
The 25-year-old started on the bench alongside compatriot Cyriel Dessers, who watched the entire match as an unused substitute.
After playing for almost an hour without a breakthrough, Cremonese ushered in Okereke and the Nigerian striker restored his coach’s faith.
19 minutes after his tackle, Okereke outlasted everyone to head in the game’s first goal. It was his first goal in seven games in all competitions for the club, ending his drought.
Cremonese digs deep to reach round 3 in a dramatic late show
Just as dramatic was a match at the Stadio Giovanni Zini as a substitute match for the hosts in the second round of the Coppa Italia.
However, Cremonese needed extra time to see off a plucky Modena, who played most of the match with 10 men after Luca Magnino was sent off in the 22nd minute.
The newly promoted Serie A side had their substitutes to thank after they scored all four goals.
Okereke opened the floodgates against Ghana international Felix Afena-Gyan, who doubled the lead.
Modena would not go down without a fight after two late David Diaw goals made them come from two goals down to level 2-2 and force the game into extra time.
However, another Cremonese substitute, Leonardo Sernicola, would steal the show after scoring a brace in extra time to give Cremonese a comfortable result in the end.
