ISL will benefit Indian players, says Constantine
NEW DELHI: The Indian Super League (ISL), despite the perceived success of its inaugural edition, has many detractors. New India coach Stephen Constantine is not one of them.
“I think even a practice session with someone like Mikael Silvestre (former Manchester United player) is a football lesson in itself and the ISL is a great experience for Indian footballers in this regard,” Constantine told HT on the sidelines of a media interaction here on Tuesday. “ISL has shown that India loves its football. People lined up to buy tickets from 4am.”
Even the long-term prospect of a two-league system is not a deterrent for the coach who believes the season can accommodate both and national team preparatory camps.
“I have already worked on the season plan. The presence of these leagues isn’t a problem. What matters is the number of games that players play and the recovery time they get. A quick count of both leagues shows us that players will, on an average, play 38 games per season, which is a Premier League average. Those not good enough for the ISL will play the local leagues,” he said.
However, Constantine said footballers playing “Mickey Mouse tournaments” between the leagues needs to be stopped. The AngloCypriot could have been referring to inter-office tournaments. Back with the India team after 2005, he had taken Rwanda to their bestever position of 68 in the Fifa rankings in his last assignment.
“I don’t have a captain,” when asked about Sunil Chhetri, who was captaining the side before his tenure. “I will decide on one at the preparatory camps.”
It is to be seen whether Constantine 2.0, wearing what he claimed was a ‘one of a kind’ India tie, succeeds but he does not seem to be lacking in plans. Or a sense of humour. “It was a financial decision,” he said, when asked why he decided on another passage to India.