Former coach Constantine hopes India are not embarrassed in Asian Cup

January 10, 2011 06:55 pm | Updated November 17, 2021 03:35 am IST - New Delhi,

An Indian boy holds up his national flag before his team's AFC Asian Cup group C soccer match against Australia at Al Saad Stadium, in Doha, Qatar, Monday Jan. 10, 2011.

An Indian boy holds up his national flag before his team's AFC Asian Cup group C soccer match against Australia at Al Saad Stadium, in Doha, Qatar, Monday Jan. 10, 2011.

Former India football coach Stephen Constantine hopes the world No.142 are not embarrassed by the big teams like Australia, South Korea and Bahrain in the Asian Cup.

Constantine, who led India to their famous LG Cup victory in Vietnam in 2002, said it would be tough for India to qualify for the next stage from Group C, where they are clubbed with two World Cup teams.

“I would like to say that they are going to do well, but looking at the group they are in (Group C along with Australia, Bahrain and South Korea) it is going to be a very difficult task for them. I only hope that they don’t get embarrassed,” he said.

Constantine advised the Indian team not to play a defensive game as they have nothing to lose.

“They will have to work very, very hard to close down their opponents and not sit back and try and defend for 90 minutes as that would, I feel, be a major mistake,” Constantine was quoted as saying by ESPNStar.com.

“India have nothing to lose, in as much as nobody expects them to qualify for the quarter—finals. So, if they can show some spirit and go down with a fight, that would be a real plus,” he added.

“They must fight for everything until the final whistle, keep their concentration, avoid silly mistakes and work together. They have been together for a long time so there is a great team spirit and a will to succeed. India must also ensure that if they go a goal down they continue to work,” Constantine said.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.