India football captain Sunil Chhetri on Friday played down talks about his retirement, saying he has not set any timeline for himself to hang up his boots.
Chhetri is 38 but remains the spearhead of the Indian attack, evidenced by the five goals he has netted in the ongoing SAFF Championship here from three matches.
“I don’t know when my last game for the country is going to be. It derives from the fact that I have never had long-term targets, I think about the next match, the next 10 days. It (retirement) may come on a day when probably I don’t want to, but I will be done. Till that time, I (will) never think about it,” Chhetri said on the eve of India’s semi-final against Lebanon.
Chhetri, the second-highest goal-scorer from Asia with 91 strikes behind Iran’s Ali Daei (109), said he has set some parameters for himself to determine about retiring.
“Generally, there are some parameters that I think about... whether I am contributing to the team or not, whether I am able to score a goal or not, training as hard as I want or not. These are some of the markers that will tell me whether I am good for this team or not. The day I see that it is not there, I am done, I am gone because there is no other motivation for me to play.
“But sadly, I can’t tell whether it (retirement) is in one year or six months. Fortunately or unfortunately my family is also guessing this, and whenever they mention this, jokingly, I tell my stats to them. The day I am finished with my petrol or diesel or electric or whatever I am done,” said Chhetri, who is third on the list of active players with the most international goals. Ahead of him are Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
Chhetri said Lebanon are a tough side and taking them for granted might backfire. He did not read too much into India’s 2-0 victory over Lebanon in the recent Intercontinental Cup final.
“Lebanon is a tough side. We have already played them twice. I’m pretty sure they have the same feeling about us and trying to stay calm. We did our best to recuperate after so many games in such a short time,” said Chhetri.
India’s assistant coach Mahesh Gawli said the team is motivated and ready for the big test against Lebanon. “The boys are motivated, the boys are committed,” he said.
