We need to play more friendlies: Stephen Constantine

Mumbai: India football team manager Stephen Constantine was full of praise for star striker Sunil Chhetri after the Blue Tigers triumphed 4-1 over Puerto Rico, in an international friendly, at the Andheri Sports Complex, in Mumbai on Saturday.

Chhetri, who handed over his captain’s armband to goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu for the game, played a part in all three of India’s first half goals, setting up two of them, and scoring a peach of a free-kick himself.

“Sunil is the talisman of this team. He’s a wonderful player, he’s been scoring goals for the last 10 years,” said Constantine, after the match. “He’s kept himself fit, he’s one of the leaders of the team. He is the captain of this team, and as long as he’s fit, he plays.

“A player of his calibre, you have to find a place for him in the team. And I think for me, his (best) place is behind the striker,” he added.

“He brings other people into the game, he’s got an eye for goal, he sees the pass, and he works. He does the work, so personally, I like to play him behind the striker.”

Although Constantine was happy with the result, he also went on to state that giving his players the right kind of exposure is the main positive he will take out of this game.

“We need to play internationals, to climb the international rankings. One game is not going to help,” said the 53-year-old.