Saturday, June 24 2006 14:20 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Rio de Janeiro: One of the players who stood out during the Brazil vs Japan World Cup match was Japan's Alessandro Santos - a footballer of Brazilian origin.

Born on July 20, 1977, in Paran, Brazil, and often known as Alex, he started playing soccer when he was 16. He significantly helped score the match's first goal to Japan Thursday.

Alex is one of the five Brazilian players who are playing for other countries in the World Cup. Other players are Deco, who plays for Portugal; Zinha, for Mexico; Marcos Senna, for Spain, and Francileudo dos Santos, for Tunisia.

Not to forget the three Brazilians coaching other countries: Luis Felipe Scolari, who coaches Portugal; Brazil's all-time legend Zico, responsible for the Japanese team, and Marcos Paqueta, who directs Saudi Arabia.

Alex went to Japan as a high school student, both to learn about Japan and to pursue an opportunity to play football. After living in Japan for eight years, and becoming quite fluent in Japanese and thoroughly settled in the country, Alex obtained Japanese citizenship in late 2001, being able to play in the 2002 FIFA World Cup. Alex currently plays for the Urawa Red Diamonds of the J-League.

The reason for such a migration is simple. Brazils national team is already filled with stars. It is almost impossible for aspiring players to break into a team in which the talents of Real Madrid's Ronaldo are barely missed and the likes of Lyon's Juninho Pernumbucano are mere substitutes.

To many of them, the only solution is to search for nations that are only too welcome to inject some Latin American flair and technique into their football.

Brazilian Federal Football Confederation estimates around 850 Brazilians per year leave their homeland for more prosperous and stable leagues in Europe and Asia.

Francileudo dos Santos was one of these players. At the age of 17, he went to Belgium, where he played for Standard Liege. But it was in Tunisia that Francileudo could show all his football, especially when he scored 32 goals in two seasons for team Etoile du Sahel.

In 2003, he naturalized himself Tunisian and in 2004 he was already on the country's national team. He currently plays for Toulouse, in France.

"You must understand my ambition to play in the big tournaments. There was no chance I'd ever play from Brazil. Tunisia offered me an alternative and I would never have forgiven myself if I had not taken it up. The first time I went to Tunisia, I had never heard of it. I thought we were in Turkey. But very soon I learned to like the place and the people," he said.

Anderson Luiz de Sousa, known as Deco, also left Brazil very early. Born in Sao Bernardo do Campo, in Sao Paulo state, he left the famous Sao Paulo team Corinthians for Portugal's Benfica as a teenager in 1997.

After shining for a number of small teams such as Alverca and Salgueiros, initially on loan but then on permanent contracts, Deco was eventually picked up by FC Porto, where he was labelled 'Magic' for his sumptuous playmaking skills.

Deco gained Portuguese citizenship after six years' residency, and was only too happy to make his international debut against Brazil in March 2003, aptly scoring the winning goal in a 2-1 victory for his adopted country. He now plays for Spanish team Barcelona.

And do these players regret their decision? Absolutely not. Says Antonio Naelson Matas, who is also known as Zinha, "I'm with Mexico, that's the only feeling that matters. Come what may, I'm going to defend the Tricolour just as if I'd been born here. This country has given me everything I have in life."

This is not to say that Zinha has forgotten his origins.



"Whenever Mexico is not playing, I fervently support Brazil," he admits.

Marcos Senna of Spain agrees with Zinha. In case Spain faces Brazil in the final, he has no doubts as to where his loyalty lies. "If I end up playing against them, I'll give it my best shot. And if I score, then of course I'll celebrate. I know that it won't be easy because I love my country, but above all I'm a professional, and my head is 100 percent with Spain," he said.