Jap football ace Matsui makes mark in France
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PARIS (AFP) - Japanese midfielder Daisuke Matsui is proving a hit both on and off the field at French side Le Mans.
Not only is the 26-year-old spearheading his team's midfield, he is also proving a big hit at the club shop where replica shirts bearing his name are a best-seller.
"We didn't buy him for marketing purposes but now we have had to rethink that," a club spokesman said.
His number 22 jersey sells around 1,500 copies a year which is twice as many as those of top scorer Tulio de Melo.
The club has also launched a website in Japanese while games featuring Le Mans are beamed back to Japan.
Matsui is also trailed by a small club of Japanese jounalists who have regularly reported on his matches in his four-year stay at the mid-table club.
"They ask me about the games but also they want to know about my daily life in France," said Matsui who is enjoying his best spell after joining from Kyoto Purple Sanga in 2004.
Le Mans coach Rudi Garcia is a confirmed fan of Matsui.
"He is an artist with the ball," Garcia told French sports daily L'Equipe.
"Sometimes we have to push him but he is a real creator, capable of scoring goals and providing the decisive pass. He has remarkable qualities and his game is all instinct.
"He has become one of the team's most important players."
Matsui says he wants to be treated the same as his teammates.
"Perhaps I can help develop sporting and cultural relations between the two countries, but I don't feel like an ambassador," he said.