India coach Stephen Constantine has blamed the Indian Super League clubs for “exhausting” his players ahead of the ongoing SAFF Cup.
India coach Stephen Constantine has blamed the Indian Super League clubs for “exhausting” his players ahead of the ongoing SAFF Cup. Besides, the 53-year-old also blamed the clubs to “force Sandesh Jhingan and Cavin Lobo” to play with injuries.
“It is the pressure from the clubs,” said Constantine here on Thursday. “The ISL and I-League clubs are their bread and butter but Sandesh should never have played for the last four weeks of the ISL because he had a ligament injury,” the Englishman said.
“He has aggravated the injury and if I play him in the SAFF, he will miss three months of his career and it’s the same with Cavin Lobo (hip).”
The two were members of the Kerala Blasters squad.
“We got another player who spent 65 per cent of the training above 85 per cent of his heart rate, which means he is not fit and he’s just come from the ISL season.”
Constantine also blamed the SAFF organisers on the timing of the event. “The timing is not good, I would have liked it in June. It is an international competition immediately after the ISL and with the I-League starting in a few weeks”
He also said there was no pressure on him to win the cup.
“I have pressure in every game, but not from outside, it’s within me. I hate losing. I would rather like us to qualify for the Asian Cup than be the big fish in the SAFF,” the coach said.
