Language no barrier for Blackburn Rovers' Ben Brereton

Brereton will be aiming to feature for La Roja against Argentina in their World Cup qualifier on Friday after spending the last week training with his new national team colleagues.

The 22-year-old has pledged allegiance to Chile and will hope to be involved in their World Cup qualifying double-header, with Bolivia their opponents next week, before the re-arranged Copa America gets under way later this month.

The Rovers attacker earned his first call-up on the back of seven goals in 2020/21, and while he will hope to do his talking on the pitch, he says the language hasn’t been an issue.

Q: Have you thought about what song you will sing for your initiation?

Ben Brereton: The only song in Spanish that I know is “Feliz Navidad”. So maybe that's it.

Q: Have you learned the anthem?

BB: A little bit, in my room. I know the rhythm, but not all the words.

— Rich Sharpe (@richsharpe89) May 31, 2021

Brereton was part of the first batch of national team players to join the training camp last week, with more senior stars joining in recent days.

“I have been learning keywords. They also provided me with the basic football words, and my understanding with my teammates has been very good,” he explained.

“Everyone has received me very well, both players and coaching staff.

“Obviously, I have talked more with (Watford defender) Francisco Sierralta, who speaks very good English and plays in the same division as me.

“I have also spoken a lot with Sebastián Vegas, because I was with him the first night, and he also speaks very good English, but, in general, I have got along well with everyone.”