FANATICAL supporters of a superstar footballer have unofficially re-named a street after him in their country’s capital city.

The latest chapter in the Ben Brereton fairy-tale has seen a street named after the Blackburn Rovers attacker in Santiago, the capital of Chile, the country of his mother’s birth.

‘Bretetonmania’ continues in full swing after the 22-year-old scored back-to-back goals in wins over Paraguay and Venezuela, helping to keep Chile’s hopes of a spot in the 2022 World Cup alive.

He has become a sensation among La Roja supporters with his performances on the field, while off it he amassed something of a cult following, including 1.1m on social media site Instagram.

His latest accomplishment is to have a street named after him, according to reports in the South American country, where ‘Big Ben’, as he has become affectionately known, has acquired star status.

Chilean football website RedGol explained how residents in the neighbourhood of Las Condes woke up on Friday morning just hours after Brereton had scored a 73rd minute goal in his last game of international duty to find supporters had paid unusual homage to their hero.

Formerly known as just ‘Benjamin Street’ the fans added Brereton’s surname onto the street sign to read ‘Benjamin Brereton Street’.

“In Las Condes, by Isidora Goyenechea, between Luz and San Sebastián, is Benjamin Street.

“A fan took advantage of this and simply added Brereton. The final result is an intersection of Benjamin Brereton Street and Isidora Goyenechea, though there is a little difference between the English name for ben and the Spanish version,” an article on the football website reads.

Brereton’s two goals for Chile during the international break took his tally this season to 12 goals in 15 games. His fine form has been the backbone of a positive start to the season for Rovers which included him netting a hat-trick in last month’s 5-1 win over Cardiff City.

The 10 goals he has netted for Rovers is already more than he managed in the first three years of his time at Ewood Park since a £6m move from Nottingham Forest in 2018. It wasn’t until the post-lockdown games of the 2019/20 season that Brereton forced his way into becoming a regular in Tony Mowbray’s side.

Chirstian Ovalle, a sports journalist in the country, told the Lancashire Telegraph: “After his performances he is now one of the most popular players of the squad. In fact, in the last match people in the stadium started singing “Dale Brereton”.

“It’s kind of weird what is happening with him. People love him and he has adapted very good to the squad. I think fans see he is humble and they are very thankful for the fact he chose to play for Chile. Now you see a lot of shirts with number 22 and Brereton Díaz at the back. In Chile we talk about a “Breretonmanía” because this social phenomenon that has been Brereton’s appearance.”