Ben vs Paraguay

Poor game but a win is a win. BBD didnt have a great game. The yellow he received was clumsy & stupid. Suspended next game. Good for Rovers but the fans in Santiago on Tuesday will miss him. Ecuador have a vibrant team but they only seem to play well at Quito. The Argentine announcers at some point after BBD ran at and into Paraguayan defenders said "....and Brereton, who likes to run, shows why shooting and scoring are more his thing" since he looked stiff & out of sorts running at defenders with the ball. Chile is in qualifying [play-off] territory for the 1st time now.

Chile's chances to qualify are still less than 50% i think but theae 2 games will clear that up. When Chile has advanced beyond the 1st round in a world cup it is 100% guaranteed we get eliminated by Brazil. Always. It is the way it has been. It is the way it will continue to be. If Chile make it out of pool stage they are 100% playing Brazil. And losing . 1962 Chile 2-4 Brazil in semi-finals 1998 Chile 1-4 Brazil rd of 16 2010 Chile 0-3 Brazil rd of 16 2014 Chile 1-1 Brazil (pens 2-3) rd of 16

A very good article from ESPN based on a recent interview with Ben at Ewood Park. Gets into some of his biography and the unique story behind his improved play and rise to intercontintenal fame. It includes a video of part of the interview with some good pictures. https://www.espn.com/soccer/blog-espn-fc-united/story/4517029/ben-brereton-diaz-from-stoke-to-chile-via-blackburnvideo-games-and-whatsapp Ben Brereton Díaz: From Stoke to Chile via Blackburn, video games, and WhatsApp BLACKBURN, England -- From the outside looking in, the Ben Brereton Díaz story looks like a footballing fairytale. Once upon a time, there was a young striker from Stoke who was struggling to score goals, but something happened. He started scoring goals, a computer game apparently unearthed his Chilean ancestry, and eventually, he would make his international debut against Lionel Messi. Now he's one of the most famous people in Chile and the face of Pepsi. At the start of the season he was 1000-1 to score 20 league goals for Blackburn Rovers in the Championship. He's already got 13, and the clocks have only just gone back; betting companies in England are already paying out on him reaching the milestone. And all this, six years after he contemplated giving the game up, having been told for a second time he wasn't going to be good enough to be a professional footballer. In Chile, the crowd chants "Brereton." At Blackburn, they cheer for "Díaz" and it's all a little bit...out there.

I know what Ben would want.....

CONMEBOL's official Twitter feed today featured our boy Ben while promoting the upcoming round of WC qualifyers. I'm not on Twitter but my wife is so I forced her to look it up and send me the screenshot. So Ben Brereton Díaz is not only the new face of Chilean football but the face of all South American football it seems. "The qualifyers are back and Ben knows it"

"Chilean at heart" Last night's news story on BBD focussed on statements he had made during the week saying how proud he felt to play for Chile. Ben said it has given him the drive & confidence to improve his performance with Blackburn Rovers. BBD said has bonded & become better friends with the team members each time he gets called up. He relishes every trip to Chile. They also contrasted Ben's statements with the many comments made by Tony Mowbray complaining & bemoaning his absence at every international call-up Ben has. "Brereton and his pride defending Chile" [Several players have independently stated that despite the language barrier Ben has won over his team mates/locker room with his easy-going & "light" personality, ambition, and play.] They then interviewed people on the street, all of whom sang Ben's praises. The young and old love the guy.

I see....

I dont get it....¿what trouble? ¿To take a plane to south américa? ¿To sign autographs?

Ben Brereton landed in Santiago de Chile yesterday. A large number of fans and reporters were waiting for him unleashing a fresh round of Breretonmanía. "Brereton: Lasarte's weapon to keep the dream alive" Chile play Paraguay away on Thursday.

Highlights of yesterday's win vs Sheffield Utd. "New Ben Brereton goal in England" "Ben unstoppable" "Unstoppable: Brereton scored in Blackburn's win"

BBD vs Sheffield United today. Goal play at min 02:23.

I have seen this now in several articles so it made an impact in Chile. Seemingly the most important detail to come out of his long interview is that he is a bit of a Colo Colo fan because his mother is a mild supporter of the team. Colo Colo is Chile's most popular club & certainly one of the "big two" [along with Universidad de Chile]. They are know as "los albos" [the whites, same root as albino or Albion]. Big Ben is "White" "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree! Brereton and his mother are Colo Colo supporters." Litterally in Spanish "from such stick/wood such a sliver".

Our boy sat down with a popular Chilean sports program at Ewood Park this week for an extended interview. Questions are in Spanish but BBD answers in English, so at least there's that....

Chilean news from lastnight. Mentioned Blackburn's 0-7 defeat but no highlights. The coverage focused on Brereton being called back for next week's Chile qualifyers vs Paraguay & Ecuador and Tony Mowbray's complaints and whining regarding BBD's international duties. "Mowbray is suffering from a panic and complaint attack". They displayed his recent quote regarding this accompanied by various shots of Mowbray eating and holding up a chocolate bar. "They cry for Ben" "Blackburn cries due to Brereton call-up"

Brereton vs Fulham "¡Tough Defeat!"

I think BBD benefitted from going to train with Chile. That said, I think that benefit derives mostly from Ben himself. He took the chance to go down there. He managed to win a spot on the team. He managed to be an undisputed started and goal-scorer now with the team. And most of that is due to Ben, his drive, and his ambition. Let it be known that Chile's Uruguayan coach, Martín Lasarte, is ADEQUATE. He and his coaching staff are not bad, nor are they good. They are adequate. He was hired to replace the previous coach, Reilando Rueda, who impressed few and seeing the writing on the wall he decided to step down to go coach his native Colombia which had better chances of qualifying to Qatar anyway. Lasarte has come under heavy criticism and not just for his poor results. The team doesn't really looked "worked" (unlike the teams under Bielsa or Sampaoli) and the coach has failed to make much of a positive imprint on Chile's play. He has made many poor decisions. So I would not give too much credit to the Chilean national team's coaching staff for improving Ben. I think Ben being exposed to even a mediocre South American coach is still beneficial to him as a young player as he is learning a different football culture and style of play. Playing and practicing with South Americans (even mediocre ones) can only benefit a player with Ben's football pedigree as it's just more stuff to put in your toolkit. So I would credit his whole South American adventure with improving him (though not necessarily due to the coaching per se) another 20% but i have to agree that 80% of his improvement is confidence, which his play with Chile has helped fuel.

Chilean news again highlighting Ben's performance with Blackburn yesterday. Ben unstoppable Chileans were happy to see Chilean flags post BBD goals. "Ben is lit: Scores a double in England"

Our boy vs Derby.

Chilean news from lastnight. They talked about the quarantine measures being taken with Ben, as explained by Mowbray. They also showed the game highlights. The piece ends by mentioning the upcoming transfer window saying "Rovers have pretty much abandoned any hope of keeping the attacker at Blackburn." Is this true? "Ben in quarantine" "Blackburn's strict health bubble for Ben" as explained by Mowbray with a voiceover. Highlights from yesterday's game vs QPR. "Ben could do little to avoid Blackburn's loss today."

Yes, i stand in front of my tv in my living room with my phone & take pictures, old-skool. Chilean news from last night. "Breretonmanía Continues" "A fan of Ben celebrated his birthday honoring the attacker." A Brereton-themed birthday party. The family joked "we ate his heart out!"

Here's a song to sing in the shower, dedicated to Ben. Came out earlier this week, penned by some comedian i've never heard of. I Love You Shushetumare (I love you, motherfucker) Lyrics: Ben Brereton, Ben Brereton, Ben Brereton Es nuestro salvador. (Is our savior.) I love you shushetumare. I love you shushetumare. [Repeat] Vocab: Salvador= Savior Chucha=cunt. "lower class" chilean pronounciation turns the "Ch" into a "Sh". chucha becomes shusha. Shushetumare = Chucha de tu madre [literally "your mother's cunt". Used like "motherfucker" in American English. (Do Brits use "motherfucker" like Americans, ie Samuel L Jackson?).

His mom, Andrea, moved to the UK when she was 15. However, her father was sent to the UK, yes to Stoke-on-Trent, to study ceramics. He was there for 4 years before returning to Chile. In an interview, Andrea says of her father "after studying in England for 4 years and meeting my mother Jeanne, he returned to Chile." This implies to me that Andrea Díaz de Brereton [as she would be known in the Hispanic world] is actually half English, biologically. She doesnt say that but her mom's name is Jeanne so it's implied. No one's referred to Big Ben as only being a quarter chilean so i dont know. Andrea and her siblings were all born and raised in Chile. She herself then went to study in the UK when she was 15 with the full intention of returning to Chile. But life took her in a different direction. She fell in love with the virile Mr Martin Brereton, got knocked up twice, and stayed. Her parents [Ben's grandparents] and some of her siblings all live in England. Andrea is a total milf, if i may say so.

No jury would convict him!

Just as an FYI, Chilean news does cover & provide hghlights of Blackburn games now independent of what Big Ben is doing. But Chilean news was also impressed with Ben's energy. Inexhaustable Ben Ben Brereton's frenetic hours