Sunil Chhetri’s retirement has possibly come at the worst possible time for India and national team coach Igor Stimac. High hopes of qualification to the third round of the FIFA World Cup qualifiers for the first time have almost evaporated after India picked up just two points from their last two games against lower-ranked Afghanistan (draw away, loss at home), and a home draw against Kuwait last week.
A win would have provided the perfect ending to Chhetri’s stellar international career and taken India to the third round. Instead, to be certain of booking their spot in the next round, India are now faced with an uphill task of winning the concluding group clash against Asian champions Qatar at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium in Doha on Tuesday.
