London, Mar 6 : Park Ji Sung has been asked to back a campaign to save frogs after he once admitted that he drank them as boiled juice to build his stamina.

A South Korean environmental group is appealing to the Manchester United ace to help it protect the amphibians from a surge in consumption after a rise in the practice in his native Korea, since he made the claims in his 2006 autobiography.

Lobby group ‘Frogs Friends’ said that consumption of frog juice had surged after the 31-year-old midfielder said he had drunk it as a tonic, and said they would lobby the Premier League star to join their campaign.

“I do not know if it is just coincidence but after it was revealed... that Park eats frogs as a means to boost his strength, the number of cases of illegal poaching of frogs and toads residing in mountains has increased,” the Daily Mail quoted campaign organiser Park Wan-hee as saying.

Since its establishment in 2007, Frogs Friends has been campaigning to stop Koreans killing amphibians for perceived health properties.

Park said that his father had fed him frog juice to boost his stamina.

“If Park joins our campaign to stop the practice, it would correct people’s misconceptions about eating frogs, believing it will raise their stamina,” the lobby group said. (ANI)