BERLIN (AP) — A top member of a rising German nationalist party is drawing criticism for saying many people wouldn't want Jerome Boateng, a key player on Germany's national soccer team whose father was born in Ghana, as their neighbor.

Alexander Gauland, deputy leader of Alternative for Germany, was quoted Sunday as telling the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper: "People find him good as a footballer. But they don't want to have a Boateng as their neighbor."

Germany's national team has long reflected varied ethnic backgrounds. Berlin-born Bayern Munich defender Boateng has played 57 games for Germany and was a mainstay of the 2014 World Cup-winning team.

Justice Minister Heiko Maas called Gauland's comment "unacceptable." He wrote on Twitter: "Anyone who talks like this unmasks himself, and not just as a bad neighbor."