CHENNAI: On Wednesday morning when the news about the Indian government clearing both national football teams for the Asian Games was yet to break, Sunil Chhetri understandably didn’t want to address the issue head-on. Yet, he still had a message. “I can tell you one thing,” he told this daily. “The bigger games and bigger tournaments we play, the better it is for us as a nation that wants to improve.”
Chhetri, who will captain the men’s side at Hangzhou, however, was intimate when asked whether this country lacks something when compared to mid-ranging Asian sides. “We are more improved than what we were 10 years ago,” he said. “I think we are doing very well. The problem is because we are eyeing to be in the top 10 in Asia and staying there, no matter how much we achieve, it’s always going to be less. The point here is the government, Federation (AIFF), corporates, ISL, I-League, players, coaches... we have got to keep our heads down and keep working hard. Because we know where we want to reach is far away and whatever good we have done in the last 10 years is outstanding but where we want to reach is still far away. So, we just have to keep working hard.”
Over the last one-and-a-half months or so, the men’s national team have delivered two titles (Intercontinental Cup and the SAFF Championship). Needless to say, Chhetri’s goals, either from the spot or from open play proved pivotal. Over the course of the two events, he was the top-scorer with seven.
However, the striker wasted no time in reminding that it was the result of the collective and he was only responsible for the end product — “scoring goals”. “I have been blessed to play with players who have really helped me,” he said. “I think my work is just the final part but a lot of the hard work is done by a lot of others... the last 19 years I have been surrounded by players who have helped me; that’s the reason why I have played for so many years while managing to stay relevant even now and scored so many goals. I’m not trying to sound cliched.
I’m really pampered at the camp and I’m somebody who enjoys a lot of privileges. That’s the reason I have been relevant for so many years. By the virtue of being a striker, I get those chances and scoring goals is one of the most joyous things in football but I wouldn’t have reached the milestones without the help of so many players and coaches. I know it’s a pity because a lot of people talk about me and my goalscoring records but it’s the combination of a lot of us coming together to score goals.”
It’s also evident that he loves playing for Igor Stimac, the national coach. “In terms of individual man management, I think it’s one of the best I have seen,” he said. “He’s somebody who really understands the needs of the players and he also knows their mindsets. Not only me but a lot of the players will tell you that we have a good rapport with Stimac.”
It’s hard to talk about Chhetri the national team’s talisman without asking him about the evolution he has had at Bengaluru FC over the last decade. “The last 10 years of me playing for my country is also the time I have spent playing for this club,” he said. “A lot of me as a player and a person at BFC because the majority of the time I have spent at the club has helped me to be the kind of player and person that I’m for the nation. The way we have played under different coaches are a little bit different. The need and the demand of what I have to do in these two places are a little bit different but at the same time, it’s similar also. So, I think what I have done at the club has definitely helped me to perform better for the country and vice-versa.”
And when he speaks about the BFC, the warmth he has for them shows. “I think it took 10 years, both the club and me, to form this relationship. Over the 10 years, the ups and downs and the things that we have gone through together, are probably why I feel for the club the way I do. I mean, it’s more like home. It’s just a feeling of coming back home whenever I land at Bengaluru airport, it’s primarily because of the club and my relationship (with the club). I never thought I’m going to stay at a club for 10 years. Now, when I look back, it gives me a lot of job, satisfaction and a sense of comfort. That’s how I summarise my relationship with BFC.”
Does he regret not being this settled earlier in his career? No is the answer. “I have travelled, learned so much under different teams, different managers, different players, support staff, culture... everything. It took the amalgamation of all these things for me to be the product I’m today. So, yeah, no regrets. I’m pretty sure all the downs also at all of the clubs I played for have made me the kind of person I’m today.”
At Hangzhou, Chhetri & Co. will play in ‘a bigger tournament and in bigger matches. In the lead-up to next year’s AFC Asian Cup, the enrich will leave the mostly young side (it will be an age-group side save three players) as well as inform the coaching staff about the next batch.