Ghana's Michael Essien has settled in his new home at Indonesia and becoming a household name among fans of his club, Persib Bandung who are 'struggling' for his replica jersey. Surprisingly, his teammates are also purchasing the replica.
Within three weeks, about 1000 Michael Essien jerseys have been sold with more sales expected to be recorded in coming days.
According to the club's Merchandise manager Achmad Gunawan, Essien's replica jerseys are so popular that even some of his teammates have purchased them.
“Shirts bearing the names such as Kim, Atep, Hariono, Vujovic, and Sergio are still among the most sought-after, but the best-selling ones are that of Michael Essien,†Achmad said.
Persib supporters, known as Bobotoh, are still delighted about the arrival of the former Chelsea player and trooped to the stores to purchase his No 5 shirt which is going for 255,000 Indonesian Rupiah (approximately $19) apiece.
The club has since recorded an amount of $19,000 from only Essien replica shirts and expect to be heading to the bank when the Indonesian season starts on Saturday, April 15.
At the current rate, Persib is on track to eclipse the 5,000 shirts replica jerseys they sold during the Indonesia Soccer Championship (ISC) last year.