Indian team's performance in U-17 WC was mediocre, it was more of hype: Constantine

Indian Under-17 team's performance at the FIFA World Cup was mediocre and the hype surrounding it was unjustified, National head coach Stephen Constantine fulminated today.

Constantine's outburst came during a media interaction before the start of the training camp here for the next month's SAFF Championships in Bangladesh.

The Briton's out-of-the-blue comments may ruffle some feathers in the All India Football Federation (AIFF) whose president Praful Patel had praised the national U-17 team for its gutsy performance in the FIFA's youth showpiece event.

Asked if he felt India U-17 team goalkepeer Dheeraj Singh's career was not handled properly (by his managers), Constantine initially said, "I have nothing to do with the looking after of that boy. That is not my job."
Asked whether the AIFF was to be blamed for that, he said, "It is not a question of blamig the AIFF. That is how it is."
"It is an appalling decision. They (the IOA) took the decision based on the results of previous Asian Games, which is held every four years. We are not the same team four or eight years ago. It was a huge disappointment. It will harm Indian football. I thought we had a good opportunity to qualify from the group."