Coaching India was an amazing experience: Stephen Constantine

As well as coaching stints with Millwall in London, 46-year-old Stephen Constantine has been the head coach of Nepal, India and Malawi.Now, he is the head coach of the Sudan national team and aiming to take the team to the 2010 World Cup.

The team are in a qualification group with Ghana, Benin and Mali. He took time out from his busy schedule to talk on various issues. You are truly an international coach. Was it a conscious decision to travel so much? Stephen: Well, I have been a bit of a traveller from the beginning. I was in New York when I was offered the Nepal job, but I love travelling seeing different places, people, and experiencing the many different cultures. I have coached on four of the six continents so now there is only South America and Australasia left! How did you get the Sudan job? Stephen: I was contacted through my website. I had done a coaching course for FIFA in 2002 and most recently in Cote D’Ivoire. There I had two of the Coach educators from the Sudan on the course and one of them was Mr Mohammed Abdella Mazda who is the former National Team Coach and in fact he rang me to ask me to come. How much do you know of African football? Stephen: I had an 18 month spell in Malawi and have done quite a few courses for FIFA in Africa so I have a good idea. I think the football is very, very good and improving all the time. The proof of that is that four of the five teams that qualified for the last World Cup were doing so for the very first time. Can Sudan qualify? What is a realistic objective? Stephen: Going into the games you have to believe you have a chance all be it a slim one as only one team will make it to South Africa and with Ghana Mali and Benin it is a going to be really tough but we will give it everything we have and see what happens. I think realistically we will try and finish high enough to make it to Angola (2010 African Nations’ Cup) which means second or third, but I will take first as well if it comes. What message would you like to give to fans of Sudan and those of qualification rivals? Stephen: To the people of Sudan I would like to say that I will give it everything I have. To our opponents don’t under estimate the Sudan we will not be there to make the numbers up and I can assure them that we will be ready for them all. What is your first impression of Sudanese football and facilities? Stephen: I have seen a few games already and of course watching DVDs of the National team I see some very good things. Players from the national team are drawn from the country`s top two teams, Al Hilal and El Merreikh. Would you like to see some of these players go overseas? There are many things that can be improved and one of them is getting the Sudanese players to go abroad as almost all of them play in the Sudan. I think there good enough to play in Europe and other leagues around the world and this will of course help the National team as well. I think it can only help the development of the player if he is playing in a different league and in a different environment, this experience will help the player and National team as well, it’s a long term process building teams and we need to look long term in Sudan. Will you work with local assistants? Stephen: I have always given local coaches the opportunity to work with me as I feel its important thet they get the benefit of working alongside a foreign coach. I will try and take my goalkeeping coach as I think there is a need for one in Sudan. Are you not taking on a big risk working for a cash-strapped federation? Stephen: I have been assured my salary will be taken care of and I am prepared to give the SFA the chance to prove that, I dont anticipate that being a problem. The players do not get a bonus playing for the country. Is that a problem? Stephen: Yes I think the players should be paid something to represent the country and have already started talks with the SFA about that. It is only fair to the players, so yes that is high on my list to try and change. You are perhaps best known for your time with India. How will that experience help you in Sudan? Stephen: India was an amazing experience and a huge challenge and I think that experience of dealing with such a big country and being successful is going to help me in the Sudan. Sudan is also a huge country and I will be trying to travel and see as many players as I can something I tried to do in India. Has Indian football progressed since you left? Stephen: I think it has to a degree but it is a slow process and things don’t move as quickly as they should for me. Bob Houghton is doing a good job there but some of the things he has asked for were things that I had asked for as well so it takes time to get things done. They do have a General Secretary in Alberto Colaco who is for me a huge reason why Indian football has moved forward and I think they will continue to do so. What were the best and worst moments of your time with India? Stephen: Winning the first tournament after 32 years the first out of the region was fantastic for me and Indian football, winning the Ian Rush trophy with the U18, our performance at the Asian Games in South Korea and seeing so many unknown players come through and play for the National team is very satisfying for any coach. We had some great results in my time against much higher ranked teams and again it shows that the potential is there for Indian football. What does India need to do to become a football power? Stephen: There are many things that can be done and should be done, we need all the states to get more active in football, we need organized youth academies and for me the AIFF should be looking to set up these in areas where we don’t have a lot of football. India needs to invest in foreign coaches to set these up and start producing players who can then go on to play in State Youth Leagues which I understand are being put in place. There are many more things but for me investment in Grassroots is well overdue. Would you like to work in England again? Is Asian and African experience valuable experience to get a job in England? Stephen: Yes I would love to work in England again this time though as the Manager as I felt restricted as first team coach and was not able to do many of the things I wanted to do. Working in so many places gives you a much broader outlook on the game in general and can bring valuable experience in many areas to today’s game something that clubs are finally starting to recognize as more and more foreign managers are proving that their overseas methods and knowledge are helping the clubs there working at. I am sure given the opportunity I will also be able to bring my experience to bear for any club I work for. Courtesy: Goal.com