2027 Asian Cup: At 40, fighting fit Chhetri ready to carry a billion hopes

Tucked away on the eastern fringes of Kolkata in New Town, the All India Football Federation's (AIFF) National Centre of Excellence offers the solitude that Sunil Chhetri & Co. need to prepare for the all-important 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualifier against Hong Kong next month. Having completed a seven-day camp there, the Blue Tigers will embark on a critical mission on Wednesday, first to play Thailand in an international friendly on 4 June and then the qualifier against Hong Kong on 10 June.

At 40, talismanic India skipper Chhetri staked everything he had when he came out of a much-celebrated international retirement in March at the request of India's Spanish head coach Manolo Marquez. A call which has evoked unprecedented trolling, and queries from pundits about whether he was ruining his reputation earned over two decades, but Chhetri has made up his mind to lend a hand in what have been trying times for Indian football.

Still in third position behind a certain Cristiano Ronaldo and Leo Messi among top active international goal-scorers with 95 strikes from 153 games, Chhetri has clearly been called upon to end the goal-drought for India. One could blame it on Manolo’s desperation but it’s one area where younger strikers have failed to deliver miserably over the past year — a winless one — while Chhetri showed he hasn’t lost his touch at all when he emerged as second-highest scorer in the last Indian Super League (ISL) for his team Bengaluru FC with 13 goals.

At his age and with the years of international experience behind him, Chhetri is well aware that professional sport doesn’t guarantee fairytale endings, more so when one carries the billion hopes of a country ranked 127 by FIFA.

However, as the only Indian player to make an appearance in three AFC Asian Cup finals, he has set the minimum target for his boys: ‘’We should qualify for every Asian Cup and it’s mandatory. But I don't want to put pressure on the boys and the team. Let’s take one game at a time. Hong Kong, of course, is going to be very crucial. But yes for India, it’s a bare minimum to qualify for the Asian Cup, so that we can test ourselves with the best in Asia and keep proving that we are improving.’’

India were held goalless by Bangladesh on matchday 1 of the qualifiers in March in his comeback game, and will next face Hong Kong in Kowloon City on 10 June. An outcome which clearly infuriated Manolo, and the buzz is that the Spaniard is even ready to put in his papers should the team fail to earn full points in the next encounter and keep its hopes alive.

There is, however, not a bone of negativity in Chhetri as he told AIFF.com: ‘’The initial feeling after the Bangladesh game was that we let ourselves down, let the country down. After I saw the replays, I thought we, as a team, could have done so much more. It was a huge opportunity to take the lead in the table, playing Bangladesh at home. We should have done so many things better.

‘’Ending up with just a point, I think we players have no one else but ourselves to blame. We didn’t turn up the way we should have and that is the reason why we drew the game. We’ve talked about it, we’ve seen the videos and we can’t wait to rectify it.’’

No one knows the demands of the Asian Cup qualifiers better than Chhetri, the talisman in the previous three qualifying campaigns. The hat-trick against Tajikistan at Ambedkar Stadium in 2008 ended India’s 27-year wait for an Asian Cup appearance. Then came the last-minute winner against Myanmar and a sensational strike against Kyrgyz Republic in 2017, which eased India’s path to the 2019 tournament.

Then three years back, he scored a stunning free kick against Afghanistan at Salt Lake Stadium, not to mention a brace against Cambodia on India's way to the 2023 Asian Cup finals.

The spirit is still very much willing, while Chhetri’s work ethic in practice sessions — and the intensity — can still put the Manvir Singhs and Liston Colaços to shame, though should India eventually make it to the 2027 Asian showpiece, Chhetri may not even there for the final in Saudi Arabia.

But then, you never know with him!