With a double against Thailand, Chhetri became the second most scoring player for the national team. Captain Sunil Chhetri has a total of 67 goals in the national (national) jersey of India. Currently he is only inferior to superstar Cristiano Ronaldo (85 goals) in this list.
Sunil Chhetri is the author of the first two goals for India, in a 4-1 surprise victory over Thailand in the opening match of the Asian Cup 2019 on the evening of January 6. The 34-year-old striker therefore raised his scoring record for the national team to 67, which is two more than Lionel Messi on Argentina.
When it comes to current milestones, Chhetri says he doesn’t mind too much. Whoever scores is the same, because the most important thing is that India wins. Maybe, ten years from now, he will think about these goals.
Chhetri’s total goals have caused controversy. NDTV channel (India) said his goal in the 2012 Nehru Cup 2012 final on September 2 against Cameroon was not counted by RSSS. However, it was later updated, and Chhetri is currently only behind Cristiano Ronaldo (85 goals) in the top scorer list of the remaining competitive players.
Currently, Chhetri is 34 years old and still has the opportunity to improve his scoring record for the national team. However, his gap with Portugal striker Ronaldo seems hard to level.
Chhetri’s two goals were both landmark goals. The first goal on the penalty spot gave India a 1-0 lead. The next goal came at the beginning of the second half to help India regain a 2-1 lead. Meanwhile, the Thai team caused great disappointment when playing deadlock and lacking cohesion. The return of the main players did not help Thailand avoid a defeat in the first match. At the Asian Cup 2019, the Indian team is in Group A with the host team UAE, Thailand and Bahrain.