<p>India defeated Kuwait on penalties in the summit game to win the record-tying 9th SAFF Championship championship on Tuesday at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru.</p>
<p>Sunil Chhetri, the star striker for squad India, hailed the Bengaluru audience for rallying behind the squad and providing great support, which was essential to the Blue Tigers’ SAFF victory.</p>
<p>The 38-year-old said, “Bangalore, you guys were fantastic dude.<img decoding=”async” class=”alignnone wp-image-60633″ src=”https://www.theindiaprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/www.theindiaprint.com-after-winning-the-saff-championship-sunil-chhetri-told-his-devoted-indian-fans-let-me-tell-you-a-small-secret-indian-football-1528009833-750×563.jpg” alt=”” width=”1565″ height=”1175″ srcset=”https://www.theindiaprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/www.theindiaprint.com-after-winning-the-saff-championship-sunil-chhetri-told-his-devoted-indian-fans-let-me-tell-you-a-small-secret-indian-football-1528009833-750×563.jpg 750w, https://www.theindiaprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/www.theindiaprint.com-after-winning-the-saff-championship-sunil-chhetri-told-his-devoted-indian-fans-let-me-tell-you-a-small-secret-indian-football-1528009833-1024×768.jpg 1024w, https://www.theindiaprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/www.theindiaprint.com-after-winning-the-saff-championship-sunil-chhetri-told-his-devoted-indian-fans-let-me-tell-you-a-small-secret-indian-football-1528009833-768×576.jpg 768w, https://www.theindiaprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/www.theindiaprint.com-after-winning-the-saff-championship-sunil-chhetri-told-his-devoted-indian-fans-let-me-tell-you-a-small-secret-indian-football-1528009833-150×113.jpg 150w, https://www.theindiaprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/www.theindiaprint.com-after-winning-the-saff-championship-sunil-chhetri-told-his-devoted-indian-fans-let-me-tell-you-a-small-secret-indian-football-1528009833.jpg 1200w” sizes=”(max-width: 1565px) 100vw, 1565px” /></p>
<p>Chhetri said, “Pritham Da, Shubashish, Rahul, Anirugh Thapa, Nikhil Poojary, Anwar, and Akash all came and talked to me about this, that they sensed something different this time in Bangalore. Generally, I say this all the time and I’m probably prejudiced.</p>
<p>“You guys were exceptional. the South Stand, the West Block, the East upper and lower levels, and even the North Stand. The traveling Manjapadda, the seafarers, the northeast brigade, the east Bengal ultras, and a few more I can’t think of right now deserve special recognition, but all of you getting together and supporting us in such a positive manner was amazing,” he said.</p>
<p>Chhetri led the way with five goals, topping the scoring statistics in the successful season.</p>
<p>Chhetri pointed to the large trophy and remarked, “And let me tell you a little secret, the games against Lebanon and Kuwait weren’t easy and if you weren’t there, we wouldn’t have got this.”</p>
<p>I’m not trying to be humble or laud you; I’m simply giving you the truth. I’m only stating the obvious. This wouldn’t exist if you people weren’t there and if it weren’t for the way you guys stepped in and helped us, the talismanic striker remarked.</p>
<p>He gave appreciation to the devoted Indian supporters, saying, “Everywhere we went this year, from when we played at Manipur to Odisha and now Bangalore, the whole nation, it has been special.”</p>
<p>With his 92 goals in international games, Chhetri is in elite company with World Cup winner Lionel Messi of Argentina and Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal on the list of all-time leading international goal scorers. Chhetri’s goal-scoring exploits in Bengaluru brought his total in international games to a staggering 92 goals in Indian colors.</p>
<p>“I’m hoping you realize how significant you people are. We will both win and lose games, but simply the fact that we are all on the same team gives us a great deal of optimism.</p>
<p>“And I can tell you one thing about this team: we fight. We battle no matter what. We fight wherever we are playing. We fight no matter who we are playing. We always carry out that.</p>
<p>The Indian captain said, “So, this is me, on behalf of the entire team, telling you guys, the entire Bangalore, and the supporters from different clubs, thank you so much.”</p>
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