IN THE early hours of Friday morning, just 36 hours before his club were due to return to domestic league action in the English Championship, Ben Brereton Diaz was almost hidden beneath the celebrations in Santiago that greeted his third international goal.

The Blackburn Rovers forward had just scored the final goal in Chile’s 3-0 win against Venezuela that put them back in the mix for qualification for the 2022 World Cup.

Big Ben, as this nickname given to him in Chile suggests, wasn’t quite engulfed by the revelry that greeted his latest strike, but he was embraced by it, as he has been by Chilean fans and teammates since switching his international allegiance from England to Chile and joining them on this international football journey.

The fans chant his name, and there was even a group of eight supporters wearing T-shirts spelling out his name in the stands.

The esteem in which he’s held stems from the respect Brereton has shown to the nation he inherits from his mother since first joining up with the squad in May.

He has made every effort to integrate with this national team on both a sporting and personal level. This has been an emotional switch of international allegiance as much as, if not more than, a professional one.

Santiago-based Chilean football expert Adam Brandon believes some of Brereton’s appeal is down to his lack of allegiance to a club side in Chile.

“I think he is popular in the squad and with fans here across the spectrum partly because he has no history here,” says Brandon.

“There is no bad blood there with a specific set of fans as a result of something he said or did before a big club game once in Chile. 

“Others have perhaps never been warmed to because of their reputation off the field here, but Brereton has no Chilean baggage.”

The latest international break began in disappointing fashion for La Roja.

A 2-0 defeat against Peru in Lima left them eighth in Comebol’s 10-team World Cup qualifying table, seven points off an inter-confederation playoff spot and nine back from automatic qualification.

But a return to Santiago brought two promising results. Brereton scored the important opening goal in the 69th minute against a Paraguay side who at that time were five points ahead of Chile in the table.

As was the case with his most recent goal against Venezuela, that strike sparked wild celebrations in the Chilean capital. There couldn’t have been a more popular goalscorer to begin Chile’s revival.

“Ben Brereton’s Magical Night,” read a headline in Chilean newspaper La Tercera following the Paraguay win, with the article’s author, Matias Parker writing: “He raised his arms and looked up at the sky.

“In the background, the deafening scream of almost 10,000 fans in the San Carlos de Apoquindo [stadium].

“It was a cry that had been stored up for a long time but one only Ben Brereton, the great figure of La Roja in the victory against Paraguay, was able to release. 

“[Arturo] Vidal, one of Chile’s golden generation, hugged him and practically lifted him with a euphoric embrace. The footballer who chose to represent Chile was visibly emotional.”

Mauricio Isla added a second in that game, while Erick Pulgar grabbed a brace to secure the win against Venezuela before Brereton put the icing on the cake, but his goal was still celebrated like a last-minute winner.

Brereton’s Chile career looked like it might hit a snag in August when there were problems around England-based players travelling to the Americas.

Brereton was called up for September’s World Cup qualifiers but had to miss out due to Chile being on the British government’s Covid red list.

“I love playing for my club and country and I would never turn down an opportunity to represent either,” Brereton said at the time.

“I am really disappointed about the position I find myself in, which appears to have affected players in England more than other countries.”

Chile has since been removed from the red list but Peru, where their opening game of this round of fixtures took place, remains on it.

Blackburn worked with the authorities to ensure Brereton was available for all three fixtures this October, and it has certainly paid off for the player and his adopted country.

Rovers had the most to lose from it, and Brereton will miss today’s game against Coventry City due to the quick turnaround time of the games, but bespoke rules for elite footballers mean he will be able to take part in training and matches during a 10-day quarantine period on his return.

This quick turnaround between the end of the international break and the resumption of domestic games is unreasonable for any international player travelling long distances.

However, Blackburn and their manager Tony Mowbray deserve credit for the way they have handled the situation, as does Brereton for his enthusiasm in pushing to play for Chile.

Back at his club, the 22-year-old forward is joint-top of the Championship goalscoring charts, level with Fulham’s Aleksandar Mitrovic on 10. 

Even with just 11 games played in the league, this is already the best goalscoring season of Brereton’s career and the first time he’s reached double figures.

His latest strikes for Chile make it 12 goals in 15 appearances for club and country since the start of the new campaign.

At the end of this international break, with six games to go, Chile are now just three points off an automatic qualification place.

Fans believe Brereton’s goal against Paraguay kick-started their turnaround and, regardless of whether they qualify, Chile have an unlikely new hero.