Playing for foreign clubs is Chetri's cherished goal

Dubai: Indian striker Sunil Chetri wants to fulfil a cherished objective of playing professionally on foreign shores before he ends his career.

"This is something that I really want to do as I want to learn a lot and I really want to see where I stand before I stop playing," Chetri told Gulf News.

"Playing abroad for a professional club is my main goal and actually this is something that I really want to do before I stop. This is not just for my sake, but also for others who are aspiring to play abroad," Chetri added.

The New Delhi player got an offer for trial with English side Coventry City. However, after spending a couple of weeks with them, Chetri was told he does not fit into the plans of things at Coventry City.

"But I continue trying. I have my agent [Yogesh Joshi] who is always on the look out to see if there is some opening somewhere. This is really important for me as I will get to learn a lot," Chetri stated.

Prior to travelling to England, Chetri went with a pre-conceived notion that it would be difficult to match players there. "I went with this idea that there's a huge difference between us and those players. But it's not so. Technically we are not very far," Chetri commented.

However, there is a difference when it comes to the physical aspect of players in India and those overseas. "There is a problem when it comes to strength. We now understand when Bob [Houghton] says that we need tall and strong players. In England, the players are more than six feet and this is one area we lack," he observed.

"It's not about the technical or skills part, but about the physical aspect that we lack," Chetri said.