Stephen Constantine: Professionals want to work under pressure

Stephen Constantine also talked about East Bengal's individual errors.

East Bengal's woes with individual mistakes seem to haunt the side in the Hero Super Cup as well, as the side drew both of their games from winning positions. The side is clearly unable to maintain its shape throughout the 90 minutes, allowing the opponents to equalise. After drawing both their games, East Bengal's final group stage game against Aizawl FC becomes a must-win for the side to keep their qualification hopes alive.

Against such a backdrop, prior to the game against Aizawl, East Bengal head coach Stephen Constantine talked about East Bengal's performance in the Hero Super Cup and what lies ahead. Edited excerpts from the conversation are as follows.

Under extra pressure going into the last game?

Stephen Constantine refuted any claim that his team will be under extra pressure going into the last game of the group stage of the Hero Super Cup. Rather, he said that playing for a club like East Bengal is in itself a pressure that every professional footballer would love to experience.

"Playing for East Bengal, they are all must-win games. The fact that it is not possible to win all the games is another issue, but when we put on the red and gold jersey, we go to win. So, I don't think any situation adds any pressure. We are under pressure from the moment we signed for East Bengal. This is why we come here. Professionals want to work under pressure because if there is no pressure, there is no meaning."

On whether the side will deploy a different system

The head coach brushed aside any idea that his team will play with a different system in the game against Aizawl. He gave his reasons for the same by emphasising the fact that developing a footballing system is not an easy task, nor can it be done within a few days.

"I don't know if you realise how difficult it is to get players to understand a certain system. I feel that it took us eight or nine games this season before we understood the working of the system. It is not something that I do at the drop of a hat. When I look back, most goals scored in the club's history, the most points, the top-scorers, and the top-assists have come under this system. Why would I change it?"

On addressing individual errors that are costing East Bengal valuable points

East Bengal's season has been marred with individual errors from many different players that have cost the side many games. It has been the story of the club throughout the season. On being asked what he has been doing to address the issue, Stephen Constantine said, "I am not questioning the focus of the players. I think given the large gap that we had, and the issues with the distances, the players are super focused. The problem is that we have made individual mistakes."

The mentor added, "In an earlier match, there were three individual mistakes that happened one after the other. Normally, if you make a mistake and it does not get fixed straightaway, then you pay with a goal. And we made three mistakes leading up to a goal. The second goal (Hyderabad's second goal against East Bengal) was also a result of individual error. It is something that we have tried to focus on during training in terms of 'let's not repeat the mistakes'. But, unfortunately, that has been one of the problems that we have had the whole season where individual errors have cost us at key moments."