Mumbai: The advent of Indian Super League (ISL) may have excited many, but India’s British coach Stephen Constantine feels that the I-League or even the franchise-based league are in noway comparable to the international football in terms of speed.
“The I-League and the ISL are not the same pace as international football and there’s no getting away from that fact. The quality is there, but we need time to coach them,” Constantine was quoted as saying by Goal.com.
Following a high-profile meeting in Delhi recently where former India captain Baichung Bhutia stressed on giving more time to improve on the speed aspect, Constantine reminded that yet again.
“The work done at the clubs is of one level and that at the international level is completely different. We need a minimum of 10 days to get them up to the pace of international football. This is why I have been requesting since I came here that, we can get things done in India, but we need time,” the coach was quoted by the above-mentioned website.
Given Constantine’s vast knowledge of Indian football by dint of having two separate stints with the first one starting in 2002. The 53-year-old former England player then coached the Indian team till 2005 before leaving for other club and national assignments.
Constantine was again hired by the All India Football Federation in 2015 as soon as Dutchman Wim Kooeverman’s contract expired. The Brit has also served as a FIFA instructor and is currently a member of the world football governing body’s elite coaching panel. India is ranked 163rd on the FIFA chart.