Sunil Chhetri recalls his playing time and signing contract instances with Mohun Bagan

New Delhi [India], December 8 : Former Indian football national team captain Sunil Chhetri recalled his time with Mohun Bagan and the experience of signing a football contract at the age of 17.
Earlier this year, Chhetri announced his retirement from the Indian National Team. His last game for the country was against Kuwait in the FIFA World Cup Qualifier match at the iconic Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata on June 6.
"To my fortune, right after class 12th, I got a call from Mohun Bagan and from there on my professional journey started. They saw me in the Durand Cup. I played the Durand Cup in Delhi for a local team called City FC. He looked at me and said we like you and you got to come to Calcutta. I was 17 at the time. The result of the 12th was still there. I went on the train and I was so happy that I got a call from Mohun Bagan," Chhetri said in an exclusive interview with ANI.
Further, the 40-year-old spoke about his trials at the Mohun Bagan Academy which was taken by that time coach Subhadra Bhattacharya who is his father-in-law now.
"In my head, I wasn't thinking of Mohun Bagan Academy as they used to call a lot of kids. When I went there, in my mind I wanted to go to the academy but at that time my then coach Subhadra Bhattacharya who is my father-in-law now, saw a few of us. He took trials and he liked and saw something in me but he didn't tell me. So, when I was giving the trial after 3-4 days, they kept me and left the rest of the kids. I thought, okay, as their main players haven't come and I have been kept just to fill numbers, he's keeping me. I didn't know why he had kept me and then one more week of trials and then they asked me to call my father because I was 17 and I couldn't sign any contract. I didn't know that again," Chettri added.
The footballer shared the instance during his time of signing the contract for Mohun Bagan
"When my dad came, you know old school times where kids don't tell you how good you are. It was the same atmosphere there. When my dad came and saw me in training the next day they called me and my dad in the office and they offered me the contract. I signed the contract and I think after that it is when my hard work started," Chhetri said.
Mohun Bagan, based in Kolkata, West Bengal, is one of the oldest football clubs in Asia, having been founded in 1889. Competing in the Indian Super League, the highest tier of Indian football, Mohun Bagan is celebrated for its historic victory over the East Yorkshire Regiment in the 1911 IFA Shield final. This win marked the first time an all-Indian club defeated a British team, symbolizing a significant moment in India's struggle for independence. The club has also secured the I-League title twice, in the 2014-15 and 2019-20 seasons, and boasts a record 14 Federation Cup wins.
Sunil Chhetri kicked off his professional football journey at Mohun Bagan in 2002. Chhetri helped India win the 2007, 2009, and 2012 Nehru Cup, as well as the 2011, 2015, 2021 and 2023 SAFF Championship. He also led India to victory in the 2008 AFC Challenge Cup, which helped India qualify for its first AFC Asian Cup in 27 years.
He received the Arjuna Award in 2011, and the Padma Shri in 2019. In 2021, he became the first footballer to get the Khel Ratna Award, India's highest sporting honour.
In a career that spanned over 19 years, the Arjuna Award winner has 94 goals in 150 matches on the international stage. Interestingly, Indian football talisman Sunil Chhetri is fourth overall in the all-time international goal scorers' list. Chhetri played a major role in India's footballing fortunes in the last decade, earning legendary status in the nation's sporting history.