Indian Football is safe in Constantine's hands

In the last half a decade or so, Stephen Constantine seems to be the best thing to have happened to Indian football, apart, of course from a certain Bhaichung Bhutia and Alberto Colaco. Not only India's excellent run through 2002-2003, not only the triumph in the LG Cup and Asian Games, but also the very character and temperament of the English born coach himself provide Indians with reasons for optimism. The ability of the 41 year old to galvanise a side has made him a revered figure, not just among the footballers but the entire football fraternity.

If Dr Vece Paes, chief of All India Football Federation's Medical Council is to be believed, Indian football coach Stephen Constantine is God to the players. "They all treat him like God. They respect him and lap-up every word he utters," Dr Vece Paes told SPORTSWatch at Kennilworth Beach Resort, Utorda, prior to India's Asian Cup qualifier against North Korea.

Dr Paes - father of India's tennis great Leander Paes - probably has a point. Ever since Stephen Constantine made his way into Indian football a little less that nine months ago, Indian football seems to be cruising along faster than exepceted.

Contsantine took on the mantle of coaching India on June 15, 2002 and the progress ever since has been nothing short of impressive.

At first, India win the LG Cup, at Vietnam, India's first triumph in as many as 32 years. The coach followed up that performance with an impressive show in England where the Indian football teamplayed two friendly encounters against Jamica. THe first was a 3-0 whitewash, however in the second duel, India surprised many as they held the highly rated Jamicans (who played in the 1998 World Cup) goalless.

Back home, India, riding ona fine display by skipper Bhaichung Bhutia, made shortwork of former Asian Games champion, Uzbekistan and latert put up a splendid show in the Asian Games, where the might of Asian superpower China was admittedly too strong. Suffice to say, Constantine's boys have given Indian football enough reason for optimism.

Discerning critics will soon point to India's failiure to qualify for the main draw of the Asian Cupbut like Stephen Constantine maintains, one should not look deeper in the failiure. "Tell me honestly, how many of you believed India would have lost by just two goals in North Korea. Everyone believed we would get a shellacking. I still maintain we would have qualified for the main draw, with a bit of luck," he told reporters after India lost out on the Asia Cup qualifying race to North Korea 1-3 on aggregate.

The failiure in the Asian Cup is not the end of the world. India now prepares to take on the might of Turkmenistan on April 5 to qualify for the Athens Olympics. The return match will be played at Nehru Stadium, Fatorda, on April 19. One cannot deny that there has been disappointment along the way. Remember the loss in the SAFF cup, at Dhaka, in Bangladesh, at a time when India were overwhelming favourites. Constantine's side without talismanic captain and star striker Baichung Bhutia, were not having the best of tournaments. A series of administrativeblunders badly affected the Indians' training sessions in Dhaka, which didn't help their preparation for taking on a Bangladesh side brimming with confidence in front of a partisan crowd in the semi-final. India lost out on a stunning Golden Goal.

But these lackadaisical performances can be excused.

Prior to Constantine's arrival in India, he was a hero in the Himalayan Kingdom of Nepal, having worked wonders with the team. When he took over Nepal in 1999, Nepal had won just twice in five years. Yet, within weeks, the Englishman led them to the final of the South Asian Games - Nepal's greatest sporting feat.

Constantine, 41, not attempts to try his magic on India but admits the task is simply onerous and time-consuming. But that does not stop him from giving the job everything he has.

"If other countries who are a fraction of the population of India, can bring 20 people together to play football, India definitely can. I believe there is potential in this country but we have to start believing in our abilities," Stephen Constantine had told SPORTS Watch upon his arrival in India. "We must take the good things we have, try to overcome the negatives and start building for the future. We need to focus on what we can do in the future and not what we did in the past," he maintained.

That thinking and the belief has not changed. And luckily for Constantine, his start was something which his predecessors could only dream of after India won the six-nation LG Cup football tournament, at Vietnam, in remarkable fashion.

After rallying to hold India at the fag end of the match, North Korea chief coach was singing praises of the Indian team. "This team can go far, very far. Its a talented outfit, who play football the hard way," he told SPORTSWatch. "Its a well organised and fit team," he added.

An immediate chang Indian football witnessed after Constantine took over is the switch to, in the words of the coach himself - Nasty Football. "You've got to play tough. Play hard to win. That;s what football is all about," he reiterates. Like they say, football is not for the chicken-hearted.

As evident in the manner India took the North Korean team by their horns. Constantine does not have a reputation of being an old-fashioned tradionalist in the conservative mould. A welcome change from the dull and boring tactics of his predecessor Sukhwinder Singh, who in the first place many say was lucky to have been there.

If Sukhwinder's tactical acumen or coaching methods are anything to go by - he employs a rigid, defensive 4-4-2 and makes his substitutions in order - it was a surprise that he was given charge of the Indian team.

Constantine instead is not defensive per se - he employed just three defenders (Mahesh Gowali, Dipak Mondal and M Suresh) against North Korea - and tends to build his side around the quintissential strengths of a rugged central midfield and solid strike force.

With Indian football chugging along nicely, critics - former greats included - could be in for a shock. With a playmaker like Jo Paul Ancheri to shape the bullets and with sharpshooters such as Bhaichung Bhutia, IM Vijayan, Ashim Biswas, Alvito D'Cunha and Alex Ambrose to shoot them, India can field a front firing line that should be as good as it gets.

Constantine needs to be congratulated for providing hope to Indian football and showing they can match the best in the business (in Asia) if they get the chance to express themselves. Yes, these are too early days in what seems like a marathon journey towards the World Cup (2010) qualification, but Constantine along with his boys deserves a pat on his back for pulling Indian football out of the Intensive Care Unit.

"With a bit of hard work, patience and continuity, its not going to take us a million years to reach our goal. Our goal should be to play in the World Cup in 2006. May be that is too soon, but 2010 that should be our target to try and qualify. And why not, with everybody pulling in the same direction, right from the Federation to the people of India, we can make it happen," believes Constantine, who as a player tasted limited success with the junior teams of Chelsea and Millwall and some semi-professional teams in the USA and Cyprus.

India football captain Bhaichung Bhutia and the only one to play in the highly-competitive English League sees an obvious change. " We have adapted to the 3-5-2 system quite well under the new coach. We have been playing in such a system where there is always room for improvement," Bhutia, aptly titled Tinkitam Express by the media muses.

The All India Football Federation with Albero Colaco at the helm of affairs, do indeed believe in Constantine's abilities. The smart thing the AIFF did was to appoint Constantine on a three-year contract.

He is also being given a free hand, besides of course a strong support team consisting of doctors, physiotherapists and physical trainers, scientists to name a few.

Its true Constantine's ambition constantly drives him forward but one cannot expect him to work miracles. One has to be realistic and give the English coach a reasonably long time to strike some sort of understanding with the players.

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