India thumped Hong Kong 4-0 to qualify for the AFC Asian Cup for the fifth time. India captain Sunil Chhetri scored his 84th goal in the game and became the joint fifth highest goalscorer in international football.
India won all their three matches of AFC Asian Cup qualifiers. (Source: Twitter)
India men’s football captain Sunil Chhetri thanked the people of Kolkata for a near-capacity attendance at the iconic Salt Lake Stadium. Chhetri, who starred in India’s 4-0 thumping of Hong Kong in the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers 2023, praised the large turnout despite heavy rains.
“Dear Kolkata, just how special were you? The entire team and I are convinced that all of you at the Salt Lake, had a big part in all three of our wins. I hope we made you smile. These days with you were memorable. Let’s have a rendezvous soon. Until then, shobai bhalo thakben”, Chhetri wrote.
View the tweet here:
India played all three games of their Group D qualifying matches at Salt Lake. After successive victories over Cambodia, Afghanistan and Hong Kong, the side is poised to make their fifth AFC Asian Cup appearance. Against Hong Kong, the contest was in India’s favour from the start as Anwar Ali scored the first goal for his team just 56 seconds after the start of the match. At the 44th minute, India captain Sunil Chhetri got the ball after a free kick from Jeakson Singh. He lost no time in shooting the ball into the net. With this goal, he became the joint fifth highest goalscorer in international football, equalling the record of Real Madrid and Hungarian legend Ferenc Puskas. With 84 goals to his name, Sunil Chhetri is now third on the list of active international goalscorers, behind only Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. Watch Chhetri’s goal here:
In the second half, Manvir Singh did not miss his chance to score and gave India a 3-0 lead. As India went full throttle against the opponents, Ishan Pandita converted a cross from the right to the team’s fourth goal.
With this victory, India has qualified for the AFC Asian Cup in two successive editions for the first time in its history.
As for Chettri, the 37-year-old hopes to play the AFC Asian Cup Finals on home soil. China, who was earlier set to host the finals in 2023, has withdrawn due to COVID-19 concerns. The search for a replacement host is still on.