India captain calls for support after poor attendance record

The Blue Tigers defeated Chinese side Taipei in a resounding 5-0 victory in Mumbai on Friday for the opening fixture of the Intercontinental Cup.

Yet, given the poor show of fans, Chhetri opted to make a public plea to rally support. The forward, who scored a hat-trick in the game released a video on social media platform Twitter.

He said: ''Please come and support us, encourage us, watch us, abuse us, criticise us. Football in India needs you.To all of you, who have lost hope or don't have any hope in Indian football, we request you to come and watch us in the stadium.''

''It's not fun to criticise and abuse on the internet. Come to the stadium, scream at us, shout at us.''

The 33-year-old also added: ''Sometimes you guys think the level is not the same so why waste your time? I agree the level is not the same, not even close, but with our desire and determination, we will try our best to make your time worth it.''