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English coach Stephen Constantine stepped down as India's head coach after their AFC Asian Cup 2019 exit. The 56-year-old departed after being a good 4 years at the helm of Indian football.
The gaffer is back in the news as he has shown interest in A-League club Brisbane Roar. The 'Roarcelona,' as they are popularly known, are currently being coached by interim manager Darren Davies after John Aloisi's departure.
The club is struggling in the ongoing season. Out of their 14 league matches, Brisbane Roar has won just 1, drawn 4, and lost 9 games. Club authorities are also on the lookout of some major changes as things are not going their way.
The gaffer revealed his interest in joining the A-League club:
"I'm very proud of the four years I had there but... I want to come back to club football and I know the Brisbane job is available so I’d be interested in it,” Constantine said to The Courier-Mail.
“I miss the day-to-day interaction with players at club level, training every day, a game every week or twice a week, it’s different, so if I did get the opportunity to return to club football, I would do that," the former Indian coach added.
Meanwhile, Erik Paartalu, who was with Brisbane Roar from 2010–2013, did not look too happy upon getting to know about this speculation. Bengaluru FC's Defensive Midfielder reacted on Twitter:
"It's better not to comment further. I just care about my old club. They need to turn it around and need someone better for that job," Paartalu commented in another Tweet.
Constantine would be disappointed as the Blue Tigers could not make it to the quarterfinals and exited the competition in a heartbreaking manner. Yet, Constantine's troops defeated Thailand 4-1, their first win in the competition for 55 years. They showed a lot of grit in the 0-2 loss against UAE as well.
However, Sunil Chhetri and co. played with a defensive mentality in the all-important game against Bahrain. Even a draw would have sufficed for qualification and it seemed like that is what was playing on the minds of the Indian players during the match. India failed to create many chances and conceded a late penalty. Jamal Rashid converted it to help Bahrain to a 1-0 win.
Regardless, Constantine's contribution has been immense for Indian football.
The Blue Tigers achieved an all-time high FIFA Ranking of 97 under him -- extremely better than the 173 they were at when Constantine joined.
The A-League will also have 2 more teams added to the competition in the next two years.
Constantine also has an Australian representative, namely Chris Tanner. It will be interesting to see if the Brisbane Roar eventually end up approaching Constantine and if he fits their bill. They received a 0-5 drubbing at the hands of Melbourne Victory in their previous match on 15 January 2018. Hence, they are in dire need of roping in a new head coach as soon as possible.
Also see : Fantasy Premier League , Fantasy Premier League Tips, EPL Transfer News
