Chhetri Receives Emotional Send-Off Before Final India Appearance

As soon as Sunil Chhetri stood up from his chair, the crowded press conference room at Salt Lake Stadium cheered and applauded the captain.

As an Indian player, this was his final pre-match press conference. His last game wearing the Indian colors is this Thursday. Chhetri said, "I'm fighting a small battle inside of me," just moments after showing up for the press conference.

India's World Cup qualifier against Kuwait on Thursday is an important one for them because a win would put them in the running to advance from Group A to the third round. Conversely, a loss will exclude them from consideration.

It will be the first if India is able to accomplish that. Coach Igor Stimac had announced his resignation in March as well, should India fail to advance. It makes sense why the Croat called the match on Thursday "the most important match of my life."

In the first leg of the match in November of last year, India, ranked 121 in the FIFA rankings, defeated the nation from West Asia in Kuwait City. That was one of India's most memorable performances under Stimac, but they frittered it away with a run of disappointing losses in the World Cup qualifiers and the AFC Asian Cup.

The most depressing experience was the March 2-1 home loss to Afghanistan in Guwahati. In his 150th game, Chhetri scored goal number 94.

As he prepares for the last shot, Chhetri is only concerned with winning; he is not concerned with the score or the margin of victory.

"I sense the strain. Despite my 19 years of service with the national team, I have never held this role before. This is really important because you know what will happen if we win. Even a 1-0 victory would do for me, Chhetri declared.

India has been dreadful in their last six games, failing to score in five of them. This is largely due to the reserve bench's inability to perform when called upon. "The bench had no beneficial effects. As a coach, that was horrifying, Stimac remarked.

However, he refrained from mentioning the fact that India scarcely had any training camps prior to the World Cup qualifying matches or the AFC Asian Cup.

Every time Stimac had lengthier camps, the team's appearance changed significantly. The 2022 Asian Cup qualification matches in Calcutta, or the back-to-back competitions that India won last year, including the Inter-Continental Cup in Bhubaneswar and the SAFF Championship in Bangalore in June and July.

This time, they set up camp in Bhubaneswar during the second week of May, and on May 29 they arrived in Calcutta to carry out the remaining arrangements. "Everyone is prepared," Chhetri declared.

The world has been captivated by Chhetri's last gasp. The superstar of Real Madrid and Croatia, Luka Modric, praised the 39-year-old football player in a video that was uploaded on X. "You truly are a legend," Modric exclaimed.

A packed house is also getting ready to bid Chhetri adieu. After the game, there will also be an abundance of congratulations.

The Army, Mohun Bagan, East Bengal, the All India Football Federation, and the state government will all pay tribute to the face of Indian football.

Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Press Time staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.