Pre-match press conference: East Bengal head coach Constantine clarifies Aniket Jadhav’s situation

After two consecutive defeats in the 2022-23 Indian Super League (ISL) season, East Bengal (EB) will next face NorthEast United FC (NEUFC) at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati on Thursday, October 21. Ahead of the game, East Bengal head coach Stephen Constantine insisted that the Red and Gold Brigade are slowly finding their rhythm.

Stephen Constantine on Pre-match press conference

In reply to the presser’s first question enquiring about how he sees East Bengal’s performance in the first two matches, Stephen Constantine said that the team is on the right path and is improving gradually. He stated, “We had some moments in the first game against Kerala. We kept them at bay for 72 minutes. In the second game, we were much better. In the second half, we dominated. We need to put two halves together.

East Bengal stirred up the transfer market when they acquired the services of Aniket Jadhav from reigning champions Hyderabad FC (HFC) ahead of the 2022-23 Indian Super League (ISL) season. However, all the buzz around his signing has died down after the gifted winger failed to feature in either of the Kolkata giants’ first two league games.

Constantine said, “He has not been banished to the reserves as some people think. He has to understand the way we’re trying to play. He played for so many years on the right side and was cutting in to shoot with his left. But I bet if you count the number of goals he has with his left foot, it’s less than three.”

He added, “We have played well in parts but now we need to be consistent. We are starting to find the rhythm. I see this in training also. In the last couple of days, we worked very hard. Hopefully, on Thursday, we will get a positive result.”

Constantine stated that East Bengal is aiming a positive result at Guwahati. He said that they have taken into account NorthEast’s personnel and have prepared keeping that in mind. He asserted, “We take this team as a special case. Every team is different and has different individuals. We prepared for NorthEast in the same way as we prepared for Kerala and FC Goa. Obviously, they have different personnel and we will adapt to the same and look to get a positive result.”

On being asked how he is able to inspire his team after two back-to-back losses, Constantine said that they are focusing on the positives from each game. He further stated that they are trying to work on their mistakes and increase the team’s consistency.

He said, “My football is always attacking. We did not play with nine men back in defence against Kerala and I did not do the same against FC Goa. I want to attack all the time. If you have seen my teams over the past 10-15 years, you will see that we create a lot of chances. We are fast and aggressive. But, it does not happen overnight. We saw a little bit of it with Kerala and a little bit more with Goa. The next day, we are gonna see a bit more against NorthEast. Hopefully, we will continue to build on such performances.”

Stephen Constantine reiterated that underperforming first-squad players are playing for the reserves side (in CFL matches) to get game time and build their confidence. He explained this approach by following up on the question about Aniket Jadhav’s status, who has not featured in the matchday squads so far.

East Bengal coach said that he expects East Bengal supporters to be everywhere, whether home or away. He also assured that the fans will not have to wait much longer for their first win. He quoted, “When you are the coach of East Bengal, you expect the Bengalis to be there wherever you are.” At the end, it remains to be seen if East Bengal will manage to collect their first points of the season on Thursday.