Photo: Wikimedia commons
Indians may be crazy about their cricket, but when it comes to football, they are yet to find their footing. That’s why Indian football team captain Sunil Chhetri’s latest achievement is goals.At the opening match of the Intercontinental Cup 2019 against Tajikistan at the TransStadia Arena in Ahmedabad on Sunday, July 7, Chhetri shot and scored to become the second highest active international goal scorer. This is the second time the veteran Indian forward has overtaken Argentinian football legend and five-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi in the international scoring scene. He scored two goals during this match, taking his total tally up to 70 as opposed to the 68 goals that Messi has in his arsenal. The 34-year-old footballer is now only second to the Portuguese powerhouse Cristiano Ronaldo, who has 88 goals to his name. He managed to score one goal during a ‘panenka’ penalty and got the other one in just before half-time.
Having played 109 games representing team India internationally, Chhetri is also the country’s most capped players. He is now 13th on the list of all-time highest international goal scorers. And even though India ended up losing the match against Tajikistan, Chhetri’s skills have given starry-eyed football aspirants in India someone to look up to.Follow Shamani Joshi on Instagram.