Indian strikers Chhetri, Jeje pay tribute to coach
sharjah — Indian strikers Sunil Chhetri and Jeje Lalpekhlua paid rich tributes to Stephen Constantine who announced that India’s Asian Cup Group A game against Bahrain was his last as India coach.
“He did really well for the country. You see his records,” said Chhetri who broke Lionel Messi’s international goal scoring record in India’s 4-1 win over Thailand.
“You see the number of boys he has given chances. Wherever he goes, we wish him the best.”
India made considerable progress after Constantine began his second stint as coach in 2015.
“When he came, we were ranked 175 in the world. Now see where we are right now (98),” Jeje said.
“When he first came, his target was to qualify for the Asian Cup. He did that,” he added.
Constantine said India now must aim to qualify for the big tournaments on a regular basis. And Jeje believes it can only happen if India play international friendlies against quality teams.
“Of course, it’s possible. If you see the squad right now, they are young. But we need to play against good teams like China and the UAE regularly. When we play more against good teams, we will improve,” he said.
But Jeje admitted that conceding a penalty in the 91st minute against Bahrain was a bitter pill to swallow for his team.
“I felt like crying because it (penalty) came in the final minutes. We worked very hard to qualify for the next round. So, it’s very tough now,” he said.