Indian captain Sunil Chhetri became the fourth- highest goal scorer in the history of men’s football when he scored a hat-trick against Pakistan in their SAFF Championship opener at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on Wednesday.
Chhetri’s goal tally reached 90 in 138 matches after the brace, getting above Mokhtar Dahari of Malaysia, who had 89 goals in four more games.
It took just over 10 minutes for India to get the scoreboard ticking when the Indian captain scored after an major error by the Pakistan goalkeeper Saqib Hanif and soon doubled the lead after the visitor conceded a penalty, six minutes later.
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Chhetri sits just 14 goals below FIFA World Cup 2022 winner Lionel Messi and five-time Ballon D’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo as the third-highest active goal scorer in international men’s football.
| Rank | Name | Nationality | Number of goals | Number of games |
| 1 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Portugal | 123 | 200 |
| 2 | Ali Daei | Iran | 109 | 148 |
| 3 | Lionel Messi | Argentina | 103 | 173 |
| 4 | Sunil Chhetri | India | 90 | 138 |
| 5 | Mokhtar Dahari | Malaysia | 89 | 142 |
India came into the SAFF Championship as the defending champion and after winning the Intercontinental Cup in Bhubaneswar. Chhetri had scored twice in that tournament and built on his lead to increase his lead further as the highest goal scorer for India in international football.
With a 4-0 win for the Blue Tigers, India climbed to the top of its Group on goal difference and will play Nepal three days later.
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