Sunil Chhetri surpasses Lionel Messi to become the second-highest active international goal-scorer
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'Plays like a 25-year-old'
Indian football team head coach Igor Stimac says his 36-year-old goal-machine Sunil Chhetri plays and scores like a 25-year-old, evidence of which was his stunning twin strike in a joint 2022 FIFA World Cup and 2023 Asian Cup qualifier in Doha.
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Twin strikes win
With his twin strikes, the captain led from the front to power India to a 2-0 win over Bangladesh on Monday night, the latest effort helping him surpass Argentina's global superstar Lionel Messi to become the second-highest active international goal-scorer with 74 strikes.
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Climbing up the ladder
Chhetri scored two goals in a span of 13 minutes to help India seal their first win in a World Cup qualifier away from home since 2001. Chhetri leads Barcelona superstar Messi by two goals and sits a place above Ali Mabkhout of the UAE, who is third on the list with 73 strikes to his name.
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Scoring goals
Messi (left) scored his 72nd international goal in a World Cup qualifier against Chile last Thursday, while Mabkhout (right) added to his tally against Malaysia, also last week.
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All praise from the teammates
Centre back Sandesh Jhingan felt that Chhetri's name will be remembered even after 100 years. Goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu says, "There's one guy floating in between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi -- and that's my teammate, my captain Sunil Chhetri."
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Where to next?
The win has helped India climb to third place in the group with six points after seven games. Already out of World Cup contention, the result against Bangladesh is a boost to their chances of earning a direct spot in the third round of the Asian Cup qualifiers.