Town midfielder Kevin Bru has recalled his time as a rising star in his native France, rubbing shoulders with players who are now playing regularly in the Premier League.

Paris-born Bru was among an elite group of youngsters selected to attend the Clairefontaine academy, Le Centre Technique National Fernand Sastre, which was base camp for the France national team when they won the World Cup in 1998.

But the centre’s main claim to fame is as a launching pad for a number of the most successful French stars, including all-time leading scorer Thierry Henry, Nicolas Anelka and Louis Saha.

Bru said: “It is a very, very good school for football. There were 1,000 kids from Paris who had a test, a trial, and they picked only 23. I was one of them and I spent three years there, which was a very good time for me.

“In the French U19 team I played with Etienne Capoue, who was with Tottenham and then moved to Watford this year. I also played with Bakary Sako, now with Crystal Palace after a time at Wolves, and Moussa Sissoko of Newcastle.

“When you are in Clairefontaine a lot of clubs want to sign you. Every year I had invitations from clubs to go and look at the training ground and the stadium, and to play in a tournament. Finally I signed for Rennes for two years after I left Clairefontaine.

“I was only young when France won the World Cup in 1998 but I can remember it well. It was a great thing for the country and my dad took me to the Champs Elysees to see the team and be part of the celebrations.

“I did not go to any of the games, just watched them on television, but it was a great time for France and the people.”

Despite being born in France it was with Mauritius, from where his parents originally hail, that Bru committed his international future and he has starred alongside older brother Jonathan for Les Dodos since 2011.

He added: “I decided it would be very difficult to play for France at senior level. You need to be a big player at a very good club to do that.

"I decided I wanted to play for Mauritius because Jonathan was already playing for them. I asked him what it was like and he said it was good, with several good young players.

“I approached the president of the federation and told him I would like to play for Mauritius. I got the chance and I’m happy to be playing for them.

“It is good — we play in Mauritius for a start — and we have played some games in Africa, including Senegal and Ghana, then Kenya in the World Cup qualifiers.

“It is a good experience for us all. We know we are a small team in terms of international football but we want to improve and we have some young players who are getting better all the time.

"We are second in our group for the African Cup [of Nations], which is good for our country.

“Both of us are trying to bring some experience to the team from our time in Europe. We are the only two members of the team who have played in Europe. I would call us little stars — people ask us for pictures and autographs, which is nice.”

Photo: Action Images

theipswichman added 10:18 - Oct 30 Kevin Bru is such a likable player, very pleased he's back and hope Mick can find a place for him, Bishop and Skuse all together. I feel like technically Bishop and Bru are up there with the best in the squad and Skuse is exceptional at intercepting and breaking down opposition attacks. Three players that would compliment each other rather than Skuse and Douglas who want to play the same role in the same way.

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