Sunil Chhetri, Indian Football captain and legend, has been able to bring a great respect to the sport of football in India that doesn’t enjoy as much as popularity as Cricket, in the nation. 1983 World Cup win and Sachin Tendulkar have been able to inspire generations to take up cricket while Indian football remained a game played by few clubs in West Bengal and Kerala, in the nation. Sunil Chhetri, an International Icon in Football from India, tried his best to inspire like cricketers.
While there is a surge in fans and followers of European Football clubs and Fifa World Cup, the sport could not really pierce into people as it should have. Still, Sunil Chhetri emerged as a legend who could inspire future generations with his sheer longevity and passion. He scored 94 goals in International matches next to Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. He kept pushing his limits to bring India glory in Football all through his career.
Over 19 years, in International Football, he has been the one Indian Footballer that showcased great skill and agility that can puts him on the same level as International stars. The 39-year old kept carrying the burden of Indian dreams in Football sport for all these years.
Now, he had announced his retirement from International Matches. He announced that the Fifa World Cup qualification match against Kuwait to be played on 6th June, to be his last appearance for India. Beginning his career in 2002 at famed Indian club, Mohun Bagan, he rose to fame with his stylish play and incredible goal converting skills as a forward.
On 16th May, he made an emotional announcement on his social media page on Instagram about his retirement. He thanked everyone for the incredible support and reminisced the first time he got to play for India. Here’s Sunil Chhetri’s complete statement:
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He has been rewarded by Indian Government with Padma Shri, Rajiv Khel Ratna and Arjuna Awards. He hopes to see India shining in the sport of Football and he left major void in Indian team to be filled with young dreamers. Hope to see many more taking inspiration from Sunil Chhetri to represent India, Internationally while we wish him all the success in his future endeavors.
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