---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2008 International Goan Convention
Toronto, Canada
Early Bird Discount Registration closes March 31, 2008
http://2008goanconvention.com/registration.html
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Interview: Malawi And Ex-India Coach Stephen Constantine
After plying his trade in over four continents in the last decade or so,
Stephen Constantine is in charge of the Malawi national team. Having a track
record of overturning the fortunes of all the teams he has coached, the
Englishman is hopeful of positive results with the African nation.
* »Comments
* Print This Story
* Send To A Friend
* Contact Us
Interview: Malawi And Ex-India Coach Stephen Constantine
galleria zoom
*
*
*
So how has your Malawi sojourn been so far?
It has been a very difficult time I must say, there are a great many problems
here on and off the pitch. The players are great and I love working with them.
They are keen to improve and remind me a lot of the players in India.
Your team tsted success in its last game against Swaziland. How did it feel to
win after a string of recent losses?
Yes it was a good win for us after a run of losses. However, looking back at
who we played we lost to four teams that had qualified for the African Cup of
Nations; to South Africa on penalties and Senegal, Morocco and Namibia by the
odd goal, so the defeats came against top quality opposition.
It would be comparable to India losing to Japan, Iran, South Korea and China by
a single goal. Of course I hate losing against anyone but some times we have to
look at the opposition and improve on those performances and try and turn them
into draws then wins.
You have a friendly coming up against Rwanda. How are preparations going?
We will play Namibia on March 26 , and all games are important , we start
preparations on Monday.
Do you think football in Malawi is on the rise? How is the football culture of
the nation?
The people here are fantastic and really love football, the passion of the fans
is something special. No I dont think it is on the rise, there are huge
problems all across the board, the players lack good facilities and proper
coaching. They also dont get enough international exposure; the administration
is also a major concern and a great deal needs to be done if Malawi is going to
improve.
Is talent in Malawi similar to other African Nations like Senegal, Nigeria, etc?
There is definitely talent in Malawi but unlike the countries you mentioned,
there is no real youth development in Malawi so naturally you're not going to
produce the number of players as if had a youth structure. So again no Malawi
is not able to compete with those teams just yet.
You were the national coach of India for a few years. What do you think of the
just concluded I-League?
Well it's great that India has at last taken football seriously and they can
only improve, there still needs to be a lot of work done especially in youth
development. You will see India become bigger and better as years go by. The
first step is always a difficult one and that step has been taken.
What does India lack in terms of the Asian setting?
Well we have started late so naturally we are behind in many areas, if you look
at the Japanese, the Koreans, the Chinese, Iran, Saudi and these countries,
they have all had pro leagues for sometime as well as youth development schemes.
The lack of media attention is or was a key factor in non-development and the
sponsorship was not there. This started to change in my time there and it is
getting better coverage with more companys looking to football to raise there
profile.
Who were the few players who excelled under your reign?
Well most of them are still there,, Climax Lawrence, Mahesh Gawali, Samir Nike,
Tomba Singh, Abhishek Yadav, of course Baiching Bhutia so we had a good crop of
very determined players.
This issue has long being haunting Indian football - the number of foreign
players to be included in a side. Many believe that by having a number of
foreign players harms the chances of the Indian ones. Another school of thought
suggests that by playing a lot of foreign strikers in the league ensures good
defenders...
I had asked for all clubs to have not more then three foreigners but had
proposed the idea that for 3-5 years we have no foreign players as the we do
not have enough depth or the numbers for the national coach to pick from. This
was a problem when I was there and still is. I counted at one point while I was
there that out of the 12 teams in the league that there were maybe 24 foreign
strikers in the league, and I had maybe four Indian forwards to choose from.
It is common all over the world that teams want to bring in a striker. I know
teams want to bring in these players to help them but long term it is a problem
for the national team My compromise would be three per team with two to play at
any one time. Defenders dont score goals! And in football you need people who
can score so the statement is we will have better defenders is a mute point.
You have spent a lot of your time in Asia. As an Englishman, what do you think
of football in Asia in general?
I think it is improving all the time and more players are getting opportunities
to play in the European leagues whish is good for Asian football. They are
still far behind the number of African players playing in Europe though I think
that the physical build of the Africans is more conducive to playing the tough
European Leagues.
What are your future plans?
Well you never know in football and so I tend not to make plans, I have
ambitions and targets I would like to achieve . You never know I might be back
in India one day I did have a good time there and like to think I contributed
something to Indian football. They have a great guy in Mr Alberto Colaco who
has given everything to make the changes that are needed in Indian football and
he and the AIFF are to be commended for this, change is never easy but needed
if we are to improve further.
Rahul Bali
You can follow Stephen's progress at www.stephenconstantine.co.
---------------------------
Dempo Coach Confident Ahead Of Sur Tie
Dempo interim coach Mauricio Afonso is confident ahead of the AFC clash against
Sur after an emphatic 3-1 win in the opening game against Al Ansar in Goa,
India.
* »Comments
* Print This Story
* Send To A Friend
* Contact Us
Dempo Coach Confident Ahead Of Sur Tie
galleria zoom
*
*
*
Speaking to Goal.com, Mr.Afonso said, The confidence of the squad is high
after the victory over Lebanese club Al Ansar. Frankly speaking even I was
surprised with the scoreline. Now we have a job at hand against Sur.
When Mr.Afonso was informed of Surs opening day defeat against Al Muharraq, he
simply replied,Al Muharaq are a strong side. To go down 3-2 against them is
not bad.
Dempo have been boosted with the return of several injured players except for
star defender Mahesh Gawli who limped off the practice game against Pune FC on
Thursday.
Valeriano is fully fit while Anthony is 75%. Peter Carvalho and Dominic are
also back which shall bost our chances.
The Goan coach felt that the weather in Oman was pretty similar to the one back
home in India.
In April and May, it is very hot but this time its ok. I guess its pretty
similar to the one we have in Goa.
The coach had words of praise for skipper and star striker Ranti Martins and
said,Ranti was absolutely superb in the last game (against Al Ansar). As per
his standards, Ranti was a flop in the I-League. Last Tuesday, the real Ranti
was back.
Rahul Bali.
----------------------------------------
Rahul Bali
Rahul Bali is an anchor and editor for CNNRadio. He joined the network in
February 2005 and is based at CNN's world headquarters in Atlanta.
Prior to coming to CNNRadio, Bali was a news/talk producer and reporter for WSB
Radio in Atlanta. Before WSB Radio, he worked at WZGC in Atlanta, WVNN in
Huntsville, Ala., and WREK at Georgia Tech.
Bali graduated from Georgia State University with a degree in economics. He is
an active member of the Asian American Journalist Association, serving as
2005-2006 president of the Atlanta chapter.
Armstrong Vaz
sanvorcotto cuncolim
Salcete Goa India.
