My job is about building foundations is indian national team


 The former Rwanda national coach reveals that he recently turned down an offer to coach a League One team in England...

Stephen Constantine stated that he chose not to accept an offer from a League One club as he wasn't given a free hand to appoint his own staff. This was during his second stint as the head coach of the Indian national team who are currently ranked 163 in the world.

"I felt I'd be doing it with one hand tied behind my back. To be honest, I think I'm only going to get one opportunity in England. So if I take a job it has to be right," the 53-year-old told Sky Sports.

The English coach has handed debuts to as many as 28 players in his latest stint with India. He reiterated that his job is to ensure the country has the right foundations.

"There are states in India that are bigger than the UK and they just don't have the infrastructure. I'm taking 12 to 14 flights a month around the country looking at players. I can't just confine myself to the first division and the Indian Super League. My job is supposed to be just as coach of the national team but it's about building foundations," he says. "I'd say my job is that of a builder. It's what I do. I build teams."

He also lamented the fact that the best jobs outside England are taken by the German, Dutch and Spanish coaches as their FA's promote them. He cited the example of Azerbaijan where India Under-17 coach Nicolai Adam, a German, coached their Under-19 team and also served as the coaching instructor.

"When you go abroad, the good jobs are taken by the Dutch, the Germans, the French and the Spanish. Why? Because their FA's promote them. I'll give you an example. In Azerbaijan, you've got 10 league clubs and eight of the clubs' technical directors are Germans. It's something that the German FA have helped institute.

"The English FA don't really put the resources into it. They don't try to get English coaches jobs abroad. Why would you do that? Well, because one day you might need something. Maybe some information or knowledge. When that day comes, the Spanish have someone there, the Italians and Germans have someone. We don't," he mentiioned.

The former Nepal boss stated that he had put his name for the England Under-21 job back in 2013 but his application was rejected in less than two days.

"I put my name forward and 36 hours later I got a reply saying they wouldn't be taking it any further. One of the criteria they had for the job was to have had international experience as a manager. Then they appointed Gareth Southgate who has had zero experience as an international manager," he revealed.

http://www.goal.com/en-india/news/2696/indian-national-team/2016/07/13/25579682/indian-national-team-stephen-constantine-my-job-is-about

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