Sunil Chhetri, who joined Bengaluru FC in 2013, signed a new 2-year deal with the club on Sunday. Till date, the 36-year-old has made 203 appearances for Bengaluru FC.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Sunil Chhetri has signed a new 2-year deal with Bengaluru FC
• Chhetri has been part of Bengaluru FC since 2013
• The Indian football team captain has made 203 appearances for the club till now

Indian football team captain Sunil Chhetri on Sunday signed a new 2-year deal with Bengaluru FC. The ISL club announced that the new deal will ensure Chhetri’s stay at the club until at least 2023. The club captain, who signed with the Blues in 2013, will also see the new deal extend his stay with Bengaluru into a 10th season.

Chhetri, who joined Bengaluru FC in 2013, has made 203 appearances for the club, scoring 101 goals in that period. The 36-year-old has led the club since its inception in 2013 and has topped the goal-scoring charts in each of his eight seasons with the Blues. However, he netted only 8 times in his 20 matches of 2020-21 season.

“I’m really happy to have signed on for two more years at Bengaluru FC. The city is home now, and the people at this club are like family to me. It feels like just yesterday that I signed for the first time here, and I have to say the journey has been nothing short of special. I love this club, the supporters and the city, all three of which I have a strong bond with, and I’m looking forward to being part of many more great moments with them,” said Chhetri, after completing formalities on his extension.

Chhetri, a six-time AIFF Player of the Year, led Bengaluru FC to their first League title in 2013, and has since won five more trophies with the club, including the Federation Cup (2015, 2017), Indian Super League (2018-19) and Super Cup (2018). In addition to several other individual awards, Chhetri was named the Asian Football Confederation’s Asian Icon in 2018 and the following year, he was conferred the Padma Shri title, India’s fourth highest civilian honour.

“Sunil has been an integral part of this club since day one. We all know what he, as a player, brings to the team. But his presence as a leader has been equally crucial to us, and especially to the youngsters coming through the ranks. He is a role model, and his influence and application has been paramount to our success. Over the last eight years, he has made this city his home and we are really happy that he has committed his future to Bengaluru FC,” said club CEO, Mandar Tamhane.

Chhetri, who scored twice against Bangladesh in India’s FIFA World Cup and AFC Asian Cup joint qualifier in Doha earlier this month, has amassed over 100 caps for the country and is India’s all-time leading scorer in international football, with 76 goals. He is also highest Indian goal-scorer in the history of the ISL with 47 goals from 94 matches and is now only one goal short of the ISL’s all-time leading goal-scorer, Ferran Corominas.