Stephen Constantine's job safe till March next year

New Delhi: India may be performing poorly in the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers but national football team coach Stephen Constantine's job in the hot seat is safe at least till March next year, according to a top AIFF official.

A section of the All India Football Federation, besides critics, had been gunning for Constantine's head following a string of defeats, including at the hands of tiny pacific nation Guam, in the World Cup qualifiers.

But AIFF Secretary Kushal Das said they are not going to take any decision in a hurry.

"It is disappointing, no doubt about it. We must look into this in more detail. The technical committee will review the performance and then meet the executive committee," Das told PTI.

"We have SAFF Cup coming up and then there are home games against Turkmenistan and Iran in March. So, we will see how it goes till then," he added.

Das said the team must now try to qualify for the 2019 Asia Cup.

"There is still an opportunity for us to qualify for the Asian Cup. That is something we should try for, and that is our focus."

After a run of five straight losses in the World Cup qualifiers that also doubled up as Asian Cup qualification event, India finally tasted success when they exacted revenge for their away defeat with a 1-0 victory over Guam at home earlier this month.