Ricardinho
La Liga Correspondent
If you come from a small nation with a lower population, seeing someone from there make it to one of the top clubs in the best league in the world can be a source of pride for the people. The Chilean fans felt similarly when it came to Alexis, I'm sure you'd find Welsh fans who are proud to see one of their own at Real Madrid too. Hell even the English press haven't missed an opportunity to (justifiably) hype Jadon Sancho, it's just different when one of your players makes it big in a foreign league.
Seems like a complete waste of time to me. As an example, I couldn't imagine going on a Dortmund website to defend Sancho if he came in for criticism. Not my place and none of my business, even though he's a fellow Brit. Erlis overstepped the mark with his comment about arsenal having a racist fanbase as well.