My target is to build a team for the future - @stephen con
“Can't say at the moment how many matches I will win in the group and where exactly I will finish. But my target is to build a team for the future and I will achieve it in due time,” he told The Telegraph.
“You can't become a beautiful swan overnight. I had around 30 players in the squad in the last four games. Before this, we relied only on players who have been playing for seven or eight years. The choice before us was to continue with the old guard or to build a team for the future; I chose the second,” he added.
With Mehtab Hossain having announced his international retirement back in March this year, after having played 32 matches for the Blue Tigers, Constantine was asked if the East Bengal midfielder could have made a difference had he been available for selection.
“Mehtab is a terrific player, no question about that. But he has not been able to get around lately. He committed too many fouls in the I-League. He does it because he does not have the necessary speed anymore,” he mentioned.
"Jackichand (Singh) played well this season. He has been given the opportunity. It remains to be seen whether he can take the pressure of international football," the former Rwanda boss opined.
Constantine was forced to replace the central midfield duo of Eugeneson Lyngdoh and Sehnaj Singh at the start of the second half against Guam as they couldn’t stop the opposition in their tracks nor launch any attacks of their own.
“One of them (Eugeneson Lyngdoh) was the best midfielder in the I-League. The other, Sehnaj Singh, played a crucial role in Mohun Bagan's triumph. They could not play well that day against Guam, but I have full faith in them," he signed off.
I am surprised about the comments here. After reading this blog post I am actually more trusting of Stephan than before. First off, @munna219777, Constantine said he wanted to bring in Romeo Fernandes for the Nepal games. Back then Fernandes was just coming off good performances in the ISL and the Federation Cup and the matches were in March, a month or so later. I can see him making the initial list. Although I can understand why he did not make the list for the recent games now.
As for the other guys like Passi and Holicharan, I am now convinced that those are not fully on Stephan Constantine and probably on his "assistants" like Venky. I doubt some of Stephen's coaching tactics and stuff but I don't think he is that much of a hypocrite to not bring in Romeo due to his lack of game time while bringing in Sumit Passi and Holicharan Narzary. In the end, these guys barely even made the actual team and did not even play, while deserving players did.
I also loved the way he described what happened during the two matches. Reasoning for the army camps were acceptable and descriptions of the matches were well done. I also like his reasoning for the OCI players and agree with him on those issues as well as what needs to happen in schools, which echos what @Ashlesh rightfully said last week.
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My target is to build a team for the future - @stephen con
“Can't say at the moment how many matches I will win in the group and where exactly I will finish. But my target is to build a team for the future and I will achieve it in due time,” he told The Telegraph.
“You can't become a beautiful swan overnight. I had around 30 players in the squad in the last four games. Before this, we relied only on players who have been playing for seven or eight years. The choice before us was to continue with the old guard or to build a team for the future; I chose the second,” he added.
With Mehtab Hossain having announced his international retirement back in March this year, after having played 32 matches for the Blue Tigers, Constantine was asked if the East Bengal midfielder could have made a difference had he been available for selection.
“Mehtab is a terrific player, no question about that. But he has not been able to get around lately. He committed too many fouls in the I-League. He does it because he does not have the necessary speed anymore,” he mentioned.
"Jackichand (Singh) played well this season. He has been given the opportunity. It remains to be seen whether he can take the pressure of international football," the former Rwanda boss opined.
Constantine was forced to replace the central midfield duo of Eugeneson Lyngdoh and Sehnaj Singh at the start of the second half against Guam as they couldn’t stop the opposition in their tracks nor launch any attacks of their own.
“One of them (Eugeneson Lyngdoh) was the best midfielder in the I-League. The other, Sehnaj Singh, played a crucial role in Mohun Bagan's triumph. They could not play well that day against Guam, but I have full faith in them," he signed off.
Why the he'll he selected Sumit Passi Prem Kumar who weren't even in i-league
And what did he see in Holicharan Nazary
Hope he faces the axe soon