He had a dream run in an eventful year both for club and country but the prized domestic trophy eluded him this time and Bengaluru FC captain Sunil Chhetri admitted that the loss to Mohun Bagan Super Giant in the Indian Super League (ISL) final will hurt him immensely.
Bengaluru FC lost 1-2 to Mohun Bagan Super Giant in the ISL summit clash on April 12 in Kolkata with the latter lifting the Cup after winning the League Winners’ Shield earlier in the season.
“I know how all of you are feeling. Losing stinks. And this one will linger for a while,” the 40-year-old Chhetri wrote on his social media accounts.
“I did what everyone does after losing a final. I sat with all the what-ifs and should-haves. The freekick. The header. Every half chance.”
It’s not that Chhetri and BFC have not won the ISL Cup. They had claimed it in the 2018-19 season with the talismanic striker as the captain. But lifting the Cup as a 40-year-old after retiring and making a comeback for the national team would have been a fairy-tale story.
He scored 14 goals in 28 matches this ISL season to be the highest scorer among the Indians and second only overall to Moroccan and NorthEast United striker Alaeddine Ajaraie — 23 goals from 28 matches. Chhetri had also scored 14 goals from 21 matches in the 2017-18 season. He has scored 75 goals from 183 matches since 2015 in the ISL. He has turned up for BFC since then till now.
“And so, in what is uncharacteristic advice, go and sink into that tub of ice cream. Call for that cheat meal on a Monday. Skip the gym. Whatever it takes for you to feel better. Then after a few days, acknowledge that this hurt will end only when we win,” he wrote.
“You love this team because you know how we’re built. Don’t let anything change that. We have lost many finals and have only come back stronger. That’s the only way we at BFC know how to operate.
“We’ll hurt for now, and then we’ll brave it till we get over the line. That’s how we’ll do it. That’s how we’ve always done it at this football club.”
Chhetri announced international retirement in June 2024 but made a shocked return to play for India’s two matches in March — against Maldives in an international friendly and against Bangladesh in an AFC Asian Cup qualifying round matches — when the ISL was in recess due to FIFA international window.
