Chhetri crowns perfect return

The talismanic Sunil Chhetri scored on his international comeback to lead India to a commanding 3-0 victory over Maldives in a football friendly here on Wednesday, helping the home side snap their 12-match winless streak that started in November 2023.

Rahul Bheke gave India the lead in the 35th minute before Liston Colaco made it 2-0 in the 66th minute.

The 40-year-old Chhetri, who returned to the national team after hanging his boots in May last year, made it a memorable day as he scored India’s third with a glancing header in the 77th minute for his 95th international goal.

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India’s Rahul Bheke celebrates scoring the opener v Maldives yesterday

Captain Chhetri, who was denied by the Maldives goalkeeper in the 47th minute, was substituted in the 82nd minute.

This was India’s first win in 16 months and also first under Manolo Marquez who was made the head coach in July last year. India’s last win was against Kuwait (1-0) in their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying round match in Kuwait City on November 16, 2023.

Before Wednesday, India under Marquez had lost once and drawn thrice.

The match served as a dress rehearsal for the all-important AFC Asian Cup qualifier against Bangladesh at the same venue on March 25.

Chhetri came out of his international retirement earlier this month to help the team successfully navigate the qualifiers for the AFC Asian Cup, starting with the March 25 clash.

Maldives are ranked 162 in the world, 36 places below India (126). This is also Shillong’s first international match.

95
No. of international goals by Sunil Chhetri

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