One of the most coveted prizes in world football – the UEFA Champions League trophy – has travelled all the way to India. Mumbai was chosen as the destination by Heineken, courtesy a fan contest.
Calm, composed, with a band-aid over his right eyebrow, footballer Sunil Chhetri sat with us at the event for an exclusive interview. The Indian striker spoke in depth on a wide range of topics – from his team-mates clocking record speeds to the mental aspect of the game and scoring the 53rd goal of his international career. He even revealed his favourite cheat meal.
Here are excerpts from the conversation:
What has been your favourite Champions League memory so far?
Something that I didn’t expect, but wanted to happen was Barcelona beating PSG 6-1. That has been the standout performance. As a Barcelona fan, I had lost hope. It was not usual that they wouldn’t be part of the important stages of the Champions League. When it was 3-0 in the second leg, I thought we were in. But when Cavani scored, I thought it’s finished. That was beautiful.
You’re the same age as Cristiano Ronaldo (32). Have you made a conscious effort to change your game now?
No, it just happens. You don’t sit back and think what I have to change. The kind of players you play with is one of the important factors of how you change. Even the coach that you train with. Now I am playing with Udanta Singh, so I have to constantly work on my stamina and speed. You can’t lag behind, you have to catch him.
He clocked 34km/hr when we scored the last goal against Myanmar. It really helps when you’re training with really fast players. You become like the kind of players you train with. You’re as good as what your team is. The moment you get that week when you’re sluggish, then it gets difficult. So, you want to play for a team where the intensity and demands are high. Especially when you are beyond 30. Because you’ve played so much, won and lost a lot. So, for you to be motivated, the team you play for has to be that motivated.
All the top players who are 30-34, who’ve done really well have played for teams who want to win games. Ronaldo now has to catch up with Bale, Benzema and Modric. Look at Zlatan, because the demands of the Premier League are very high.
People don’t talk much about the mental aspect of the game. Have you ever been mentally tested?
It usually happens when you’re not scoring goals. That’s a very personal thing. Even if the team is doing well, if you’re not scoring, it happens. You start doubting yourself, it’s the worst situation to be in. One of the things that really helps is to go back and look at your own videos. It’s a very childish thing, but it helps.
There was a phase, I hadn’t scored for 8-9 games. Even during the ISL, I wasn’t scoring. Everyone expects you to score, including me. That’s when it’s very important to stay calm, talk to people who are positive. You must not drift away from the basics. When things go wrong, don’t do anything extra. You just have to be patient during those testing times and work harder.
What advice do you have for all the aspiring Indian strikers out there?
Train really hard and as much as you can. Scoring goals is a habit, it’s not magic. They say a player has a touch but the touch goes if you’re not training. You see replays of goal scorers, they’re not even looking at the goal. It’s a habit because in training you’ve done it 1000 times. Your muscle memory remembers.
If you’re good at it, keep training and don’t take it for granted. Because it goes, Shevchenko, Torres - so many examples. Suddenly it goes. You have no idea how hard Messi and Ronaldo work during training. There are so many people who want to stop them from scoring. Every time they play, there are 11 players who want to smack them. So, never take your work for granted.
Can you shed some light about your childhood?
The one thing that was different. Because I saw other kids as well. My parents never forced me, there was never a push. As kids one day they want to be a Leander Paes, tomorrow Tendulkar, then they want to be Viswanathan Anand. I did the same. I was always encouraged. Studies, discipline and to be a nice kid was compulsory.
You don’t have to come first but you have to work hard. I was an army kid, so I had to be disciplined. If I fell, they didn’t ask me, what happened? Just brush yourself and get up. I remember in class 10th, there was a cricket tournament. I really wanted to play, my mom said you can go and play. Her friends were complaining that your kid is going to fail, he has no future! My mom didn’t care. My sister and I did what we liked.
You’re in elite company now – Ronaldo, Messi, Rooney and Dempsey – and you also overtook Neymar on the top international goalscorers list. Any thoughts?
I don’t take that too seriously! See, it’s making a lot of news now but I don’t think about the fact that I am with these players. I do take a lot of pride that I’ve scored 53 times for my country. If somebody asked me when I started playing for Mohan Bagan (2002), I couldn’t say that I wanted to play for my country because it was that huge. I couldn’t even say that it was my dream, it was that huge!
I am living the dream now. It’s my 91st game now, it's unbelievable man. That is something very precious and I am honoured. But I don’t take the statistics too seriously. I hear about it, have fun, my friends pull my leg and that’s it. There are only a fortunate few who play for their country. That’s beautiful.
June is an important month for the Indian national team. What did coach Constantine tell the team?
He asked us to stay fit, stay motivated. He’s somebody who is a great motivator and he’s involved with all the players. His team talk was simple, just make sure that we’re more hungry, never lack on that aspect. He asked us not to get injured.
Favourite cheat meal?
It differs. Burgers would be great, a lamb burger! We seldom get a cheat meal nowadays, the margins are so slim. But whenever I do, a lamb burger would be nice. A massive lamb burger!
