Sunil Chhetri helps Ryan Williams take a step forward and takes a step back in rebuilding Indian football

The Indian men’s football team has been looking for strikers since Sunil Chhetri’s goals in open play dried up. Several players were tried, including Lallianzuala Chhangte and Liston Colaco who shone in patches, but none proved particularly effective.

Earlier this year, a suggestion came from Chhetri himself, a suggestion that paved the way for his Bengaluru FC teammate Ryan Williams, an Australian international, to switch his allegiance to India – a first of its kind.

“During the national camp in Kolkata in May, Sunil Chhetri told me that Ryan was interested in obtaining the Indian passport and had submitted his details to the relevant government authorities in Bengaluru,” Kalyan Chaubey, the president of the All India Football Federation (AIFF), said. Sports stars.

“I have contacted the respective departments in New Delhi.”

Williams represented Australia at youth level – under-19 and under-20 – before earning his first senior cap in an international friendly six years ago. According to FIFA statutes, only appearances in senior competitive matches prevent players from representing other countries.

READ | Australian-born Ryan Williams awaits NOC after making India likely

In India, he has been one of the standout players for Bengaluru FC in the Indian Super League (ISL) since 2023, helping the club reach the ISL Cup final in April this year.

Williams has played 38 matches in two ISL seasons, scoring 10 goals and registering four assists.

“The entire process of obtaining an Indian passport for a foreigner usually takes a long time, sometimes years, as it involves multiple agencies and requires approval from ministries (the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of External Affairs),” Chaubey explains.

“But it was completed in just seven months and I am grateful to Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya for ensuring the process.”

Williams will be added to India’s likely list for the AFC Asian Cup third round (away) qualifier against Bangladesh on November 18, and following a no-objection certificate from Football Australia, he could don the Indian colors in Dhaka.

But one name is missing from the likely list: Chhetri, who was instrumental in helping AIFF take a bold step forward in welcoming foreigners, while himself taking a step back, for the betterment of the team.

«A senior player like him is a great role model, so I wanted him to be part of the rebuilding. But he said it’s best that we make plans without him. It’s his decision and I respect that,» Indian coach Khalid Jamil said. Hindustani times in a recent interview.

India will play Bangladesh before hosting Hong Kong, China, in its final qualifying match for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup, but its chances of qualifying for the tournament are over.

Published on November 6, 2025