Sunil Chhetri achieved the milestone of equalling the record of legendary Pele and surmounted the latter in the 2021 SAFF Championship.
Key Points
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77th goal by Chhetri (equalled Pele's record) during the strike which helped India sink Nepal by 1-0 in the round robin stage.
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This goal also saved his side from the verge of elimination in SAFF Championships.
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This achievement was made by Chhetri while playing in his 123rd match for India.
India won the 2021 SAFF Championship for the record 8 time after having beaten Nepal 3-0 in the finale where Chhetri also scored. Chhetri is currently placed jointly with Argentine Lionel Messi (80 goals) in the 5th place in the "List of Top International Men's Football Goal Scorers by Country", behind Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal, 115 goals), Ali Daei (Iran, 109 goals, retired), Mokhtar Dahari (Malaysia, 89 goals, retired), Ferenc Puskas (Hungary, 84 goals, retired).