The Indian football team captain Sunil Chhetri’s legacy will now be shown to the world as FIFA released a special series about the Indian legend in recognition of his fantastic career. The series titled “Captain Fantastic” is available on FIFA+ and has three episodes.
Notably, India has not yet competed in the FIFA World Cup but Chhetri’s involvement in the new series shows how big his legacy is in international football. Chhetri is the third-highest goal scorer in active men’s international football after Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
Ronaldo sits on top of the list with 117 goals, while Messi ranks second with 90 goals. Sunil Chhetri is only six goals behind Messi and stands third on the list. During his distinguished career, Chhetri has played 131 games for the Indian squad and netted 84 goals.
Chhetri began his professional career at Mohun Bagan in 2002, moving to JCT where he scored 21 goals in 48 games. Sunil was part of the Delhi team in the 59th edition of the Santosh trophy held in Delhi. He scored 6 goals in that tournament, including a hat-trick against Gujarat. Delhi lost to Kerala in the quarter-finals and he scored in that match too.
He signed for Major League Soccer side the Kansas City Wizards in 2010, becoming the third player from the subcontinent of note to go abroad. He returned to India’s I-League where he played for Chirag United and Mohun Bagan before going back abroad, to Sporting CP of the Primeira Liga, where he played for the club’s reserve side.
Chhetri helped India win the 2007, 2009, and 2012 Nehru Cup, as well as 2011, 2015, and 2021 SAFF Championship. He has also helped India win the 2008 AFC Challenge Cup, which qualified them for their first AFC Asian Cup in 27 years, scoring twice in the final tournament in 2011. Chhetri has also been named AIFF Player of the Year a record seven times.
While it is a special achievement for Chhetri, the Indian team is having a torrid time on the field as they suffered a humiliating 0-3 defeat against Vietnam in a friendly game. India’s defensive weakness was on full display as Phan Van Duc (10th), Nguyen Van Toan (49th) and Nguyen Van Quyet (70th) scored for Vietnam to no reply from the Indians.
