Wishes Pour In for Sunil Chettri on His 39th Birthday

Sunil Chhetri, the captain of the Indian Football Team, turns 39 today. An influential figure in Indian football, Chettri has strived to bring Indian Football forward to where it is now. After a long and illustrious career, many came together on social media to make their wishes for the Indian skipper.

The official handle of the AFC Asian Cup wished the Indian legend by calling him the ‘heartbeat of a nation.’

Tottenham Hotspurs shared a video which is a throwback to when Chettri had a chat over Zoom with Eric Dier. Both Chettri and Eric Dier were at the Portuguese club, Sporting Lisbon’s reserve side back in 2012 where they became friends.

Bengaluru FC, Chettri’s current club also wished the legend on their Twitter handle calling him ”king’ for his heroics displayed for the betterment of football in India.

Even the official handle of the West Block Blues wished their captain on his special day. They called ‘Chettri the King of Kaantherava.’

Some fans also jumped in to wish the veteran on this important day.

Words truly cannot describe the importance of Sunil Chettri in the context of Indian Football. One can only imagine where Indian Football would be had Chettri not turned up. A model citizen for the younger generations, who better to look up to? His importance on the pitch is also unmatched. How many players can score 92 goals for their country? His commitment to the sport is something not many can replicate which is the hallmark of a top-level athlete. His performance too shows that it’s not just fitness but the skill to be able to score goals which is something you are born with. Being able to use that at his current age where most are retired is also admirable.

Questions will come about regarding the next person to take up the mantle, but we should learn to appreciate him while he is there. He is scoring the goals. He is racking up the assists, not many can do that. Indian Football Team’s Coach, Igor Stimac summed it up perfectly, if he is hungry and willing to provide for the team then he can go on to play longer.

Here’s us wishing the Indian Skipper, a very Happy Birthday.