NEW DELHI: National coach Stephen Constantine expressed his disappointment at Indian football team being left out of the Asian Games by terming it an “appalling” decision.
His appeal for the team’s clearance did not meet approval from the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) which stuck to the Government criteria of a below-eight finish at the previous Games.
“It is an appalling decision. Asian Games is every four years and it’s not the same team every four years and we are not the same team we were four or eight years ago. It did us harm because we had a good opportunity to qualify from the group,” Constantine told reporters here on Sunday.
He was speaking on the eve of the 45-day camp of 34 probables for the SAFF Championships scheduled in Bangladesh from September 4 to 15. Constantine thanked all the clubs for releasing their players for the Indian team.
He also supported the decision to exempt two Bengaluru FC players from joining the camp.
“The way I see it is that Bengaluru FC is representing India in the AFC Cup. It is important that our clubs participate in the AFC Cup. We also are preparing from now for the SAFF Cup, which is also the preparation for the Asian Cup. So allowing those players to play in the AFC Cup is good for Indian football. They are representing India and I am 100% behind that,” he said.
Constantine observed there was too much hype about the India under-17 team. “There was a lot of hype for the under-17 team. They didn’t win any games in the World Cup and I am not quite sure what the hype was about. They didn’t qualify for the World Cup, they hosted it. They lost all three games. Then they played in the I-League and came last.”
