Football
It's up to the next guy: Stephen Constantine believes he's laid the foundation for East Bengal
While Stephen Constantine knows his time in East Bengal is limited, he believes he has set the ball rolling for his successor.
East Bengal officials and investors Emami came to a conclusion on 23rd March, Thursday, that a change in the head coach position was imminent at the club come the 2023-24 Indian Super League season. This meant that Stephen Constantine's last hurrah with the club would be the upcoming Super Cup in Kerala.
Nonetheless, the English tactician hopes that he has done enough in the recently concluded ISL season to provide a foundation for his successor, which in this case, seems to be former Odisha FC coach Josep Gombau.
"My philosophy has always been to win as many games as possible. I've never liked the entertaining side of things, we are in a results business. This year was a challenge at East Bengal, but I believe that we have put the foundations in place for that to happen. It's up to the next guy," Constantine recently spoke on the Indian Food and Football YouTube channel.
Stephen would always mention how he'd want to be the one to take East Bengal into the top six next season, but that will remain a dream for the former Indian national team coach. Nonetheless, he reiterates how a club should give a coach a couple of years to settle down.
"You need to give 2-3 years to coaches, especially when they're coming into the situation we had this season. If you don't give him the time, what happens is that East Bengal will start with another coach, who will have a different philosophy, different habits, and will like different players," he said.
Despite the backlash the coach received and the flak he was subjected to during this past year or so, Constantine is grateful for having had this opportunity that not many get.
"It was an honour to represent East Bengal, one of the biggest clubs in India. I felt that next season I would be able to make the adjustments and get them into the top 6, but I won't be given that opportunity," he added.
East Bengal will be back in action when they begin their Super Cup 2023 campaign against Odisha FC on 9th April. Constantine and the Red and Gold will be determined to finish the season on a high, especially when the prospect of an AFC Cup slot is on the line.
"We have three games to play and get out of the group stage. I'm not going down there to eat the cashew nuts and sit back in the Sun. I want to win football games. I don't have to prove anything to anybody, my history is there for everyone in India to see," Constantine concluded.
