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The English man Stephen Constantine, who is currently managing the Indian national football team, was at Siliguri for Sunday’s I-League match between Mohun Bagan and East Bengal which ended 0-0.
AIFF advertises for U-17 National Team Head Coach. Read https://t.co/AAVmuAi8Fj #BackTheBlue
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Where Constantine steered clear of the controversy that led to Nicolai Adam’s resignation as under-17 World Cup team’s coach and also admitted that he is available and have no problem to help the India U17 squad get ready for the mega-event later this year.
As in an interview with HT on Monday, Constantine said, at the Bagdogra Airport that is about 16km from Siliguri,
“The under-17 team is not in my domain and hence I don’t want to react to what happened. However, I have told the AIFF (All India Football Federation) that I am available. Now, it is really up to them,”
The 54-year-old national team coach Stephen Constantine also said he is planning for the 2019 Asian Cup qualifiers, which begin with an away match to Myanmar next month and that’s the reason why he is watching I-League games, “I’ll be in Mumbai next for Wednesday’s match between Mumbai FC and Mohun Bagan,” he added.
While the All India Football Federation are looking for a foreign coach for the India’s under-17 team before the month ended,
The former FIFA Regional Development Officer for South and Central Asia, Shaji Prabhakaran admitted Constantine could be asked to step in as a temporary measure.
As Prabhakaran said,
“I think his presence will motivate the boys; they will be training under the man who coaches Sunil Chhetri, someone most of these teenagers look up to.
“It will also send a good message across that the AIFF has stepped in with the best resource available. As it is, most national teams function on the principle that the senior team coach’s vision runs through the youth set-up. Also, during my time with AIFF, I remember Constantine taking charge of the youth team in his first stint as India coach,”