Stephen Constantine: We need to build a balanced squad with competition in each position

The head coach lamented about not having a strong squad, especially having to play their last five games within a short time period.

Wednesday's Yuva Bharati (Saltlake Stadium) witnessed an exciting game of football that saw East Bengal and NorthEast United cancel each other out with three goals each. While fans expected East Bengal to win a second consecutive game for the first time in the Indian Super League (ISL) season, NorthEast had other plans. They neutralised East Bengal's threat by scoring three themselves to earn a good point from Kolkata. East Bengal will now shift their focus to Chennaiyin whom they are set to meet in Chennai on 12th February.

After the game, East Bengal head coach Stephen Constantine attended the post-match press conference. Edited excerpts from the conference are as follows.

On dropping Sarthak Golui from the starting XI

Sarthak Golui was one of the stand-out players in East Bengal's last-day win over Kerala Blasters. He played a pivotal role in defence to keep Kerala's strong attack at bay and earn a clean sheet. He was dropped from the first team in today's game. At the post-match presser, Stephen Constantine gave reasons for the same.

"He had some problems with his hamstring. He was unable to sprint the day before yesterday. So, we did not want to put him in and then lose him for the rest of the season. If they can't train a hundred per cent, then they can't play in a game a hundred per cent. That was the reason he did not play."

On East Bengal's squad depth

Stephen Constantine admitted that East Bengal does not have too much depth in the squad. For today's game, he said that the side didn't have a lot of options even on the bench. He said, "We are lacking in a lot of departments. Today, VP (Suhair) and Mobashir were missing. You could see how stretched we were as we didn't have many options even on the bench. We need to build a balanced squad with some competition in each position. We don't have that at the moment."

On playing many games within a short period

East Bengal are playing their last five games within a span of 22 days. On being asked about this, Constantine said that it is indeed difficult for their side to play that many games within such a short period. The coach reasoned that it is especially difficult for them as they do not have a strong squad.

"It is tough. We are playing five games in 12/14 days (22 days). It is very tough and you need a good, strong squad. Players who can come in and fill in their part. I thought Souvik did okay today considering he had not played for some time. Then the boy Jangra comes in and he was not okay. This happens when you are not in the regular team and you are waiting for opportunities. It is a next-man-up situation. We don't have the biggest squad and we certainly don't have the quality in the squad."

Coach's evaluation of Jake Jervis' performance

Stephen Constantine expressed his evaluation of Jake Jervis' today's performance. He stated, "I thought he did okay today. There are some things that we need to work out with him. He has not played for three months. For him to finish 90 minutes today is a big plus for us. By the time we are going to get to the end of the season, I will say he would be match fit. But then we will have to wait for 40 days for the next tournament. It is ridiculous to stop for 40 days in the middle of the season."

On conceding thrice against the bottom-most team

The 61-year-old mentor accused his team of giving away goals through complacency, casual attitude, and lapses in concentration. He stated that none of NorthEast's goals was well-worked out and they were able to score only because East Bengal allowed them.

"There were lapses in concentration. There was a lack of quality and game awareness. We had a plan for the game and we scored first. Then, I suppose, we thought we are a big team and we can just roll over this team (NorthEast United). We became a bit casual and a little complacent. Three of their goals are down to us. You can't say they were fantastically worked goals. Those were down to us not doing our job at the right time. This has been the story of the season from day 1. We have three games left and we just look forward."