Chhetri unretires to play against Bangladesh, Maldives
India’s record goalscorer and former captain Sunil Chhetri came out of retirement to play for the country in the March international window against Maldives and Bangladesh later this month.
Chhetri, 40, had announced his retirement from international football in June last year after a goalless draw with Kuwait in the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers.
With 94 goals, he is the fourth-highest goalscorer in men’s football, below Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Ali Daei.
However, he has continued playing for Bengaluru FC in the Indian Super League, India’s top division, scoring 12 goals to become its highest Indian goalscorer this season.
He has played 23 matches for the Blues, starting in 17 and has contributed to 14 strikes, including two assists.
Chhetri, who is second in the Golden Boot race, helped Bengaluru return to the playoffs after it finished third from bottom last season.
After hanging up his boots from international duty, Chhetri had insisted, “The retirement decision was not because of physical aspect, I am still fit, running, chasing, defending, the hard work is not difficult, the reason is to do with the mental aspect.”
India is drawn with Bangladesh, Hong Kong (China) and Singapore in its qualifying group. It will open its campaign later this month at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Shillong with a friendly against Maldives on March 19 before facing Bangladesh in the third round of 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers.
“The qualification for the Asian Cup is very crucial for us. Given the importance of the tournament and the matches ahead, I discussed with Sunil Chhetri about making a comeback to strengthen the National Team. He agreed, and so we have included him in the squad,” Manolo Marquez, India’s head coach, said.
At the last edition of the Asian Cup, India had a forgettable campaign, getting knocked out in the group stages with losses in all three games.
Back in the team, hoping for a hat-trick of Asian Cup appearances, only time will tell whether coach Manolo Marquez uses him as the conventional No. 9 or as an impact substitute.
