Twitter Goes Crazy as India's Sunil Chhetri Equals Lionel Messi's International Goalscoring Record

Regarded as one of the greatest footballers ever to play the game in South Asia, Sunil Chhetri is the skipper of the Indian national football team. Not only is he the leading goalscorer for the country, the 37-year-old has also made the most appearances (125) for the Blue Tigers.

A 49th minute goal from India's legendary footballer, Sunil Chhetri, has been one of the biggest talking points on social media.

Chhetri's strike not only guided India to a 3-0 win over Nepal in the final of the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship, but brought a big smile to the faces of his supporters as he went on to level Argentine superstar Lionel Messi's international goalscoring record on Saturday.

While some hailed him for his growing number of accolades in football, especially in a country where cricket is the most popular sport, others labelled the milestone as "legendary".

On the other hand, a few claimed that Chhetri was "born to break records", with several Twitter users declaring him "India's best".

Sunil Chhetri makes history! Scores his 80th goal for India. He now equals Lionel Messi in the list of top goal scorers in International Men's Football.#SAFFChampionship2021 #IndianFootball pic.twitter.com/sI45z9bgSm

— The Bridge (@the_bridge_in) October 16, 2021

Sunil Chhetri is on Level with Lionel Messi at 80 international goals 🙌🏽 @chetrisunil11 #IndianFootball #Legend pic.twitter.com/splVnYDHTq

— Blue Pilgrims 🇮🇳 (@BluePilgrims) October 16, 2021

Age is just a number,our Captain proves it again.Sunil Chhetri makes history at the age of 37!Scores his 80thgoal for his country in SAFF Cup Final against Nepal&sealed the victory for the Nation.He now equals Messi in the list of top goal scorers in International Men's Football. pic.twitter.com/2TPljv26wf

— Rokte Amar Mohun Bagan - RAMB (OFFICIAL) (@Rambians) October 16, 2021

Sunil Chhetri level on terms with Lionel Messi for most International Goals - 80 Goals by these two legends for their nation. Words are not enough for what this guy has done for the country and is continuing to do so even at this age👏 #SunilGavaskar #IndianFootball pic.twitter.com/wJpsVxQeVr

— Shashank (@nshashank_02) October 16, 2021

He may not be in Messi’s league, but Chhetri definitely deserves credit for being one of the best India has produced on the football pitch…congrats on equalling Messi on the goal scorer’s list & well done India on winning SAFF C’ship #SunilChhetri #BlueTigers #SAFFChampionship

— Baidurjo Bhose (@bbhose) October 16, 2021

Sunil Chhetri equals Messi's record as the the joint second highest active goalscorer.

The man is born to break records. We are privileged to have him!!@chetrisunil11 #IndianFootball https://t.co/cn7yTHkOky

— Anita Roy Chowdhury (@anitarc_1) October 16, 2021

Like Messi, Chhetri now has 80 goals at the international level. He's now the second-highest goalscorer among active footballers.

Only Portuguese maestro Cristiano Ronaldo is ahead of Chhetri in this department. Ronaldo recently extended his international goal tally to 115 goals in 182 matches.