Constantine linked to India coaching job

Rwanda’s national football team head coach Stephen Constantine has said that he has no intentions of returning to India following recent media reports that he is interested in the top job. Constantine joined the Amavubi in May this year and has enjoyed tremendous success with the national team achieving a record 68th position in the latest Fifa rankings, the highest in the history of football in Rwanda. The Englishman told Times Sport that, “I was head coach in India for three years. It is great that I am on their shortlist and anybody else’s shortlist, so it means that I am doing a very good job here in Rwanda. I do not have offers. I do not have anything to think about.” India which is currently ranked 171st in the latest Fifa rankings is looking for a replacement for German Wim Koeverman. Another Englishman Ashley Westwood is in the running for the top job having guided debutants Bangalore FC to the I-League title proving that he has what it takes to be in charge at the helm. However, media reports in India have indicated that top federation officials are instead backing Constantine for the job. Senior members of the All India Football Federation (AIFF) have highlighted Constantine’s past success in the Asian country between 2002-2005 when he won the LG Cup and finished runners-up in the Afro-Asian Games as well as his current fortunes in Rwanda as evidence that he is worth a comeback. Constantine signed a two-year contract to be head coach of the Amavubi and among his key achievements is the confidence and belief he has instilled in a country that has resurrected from being an ordinary footballing nation to a tough opponent. In his first game in charge of Rwanda, Constantine inspired the Amavubi to a 3-0 shock win against Libya in the first round of the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations. Rwanda then beat Gabon 1-0 in a friendly at home and picked a 1-0 win in Libreville. Rwanda then lost 2-0 to Congo Brazzaville in the first leg of the first round of qualification before winning 2-0 in Kigali to force a penalty shootout that Amavubi won 4-3. However, Rwanda was disqualified for fielding a dual identity player Dady Birori alias Tady Etekiama Agiti consequently forcing the Rwanda Football Federation (Ferwafa) to ban naturalized players. Constantine lost five starters in the starting 11 but has since forced a goalless draw against Morocco which saw Rwanda move 22 places from 90th to 68th in the latest Fifa rankings. It is this progress that has sprouted interest in Constantine overseas but he has since denied the proposed move.

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Constantine linked to India coaching job