Nigerian international footballer, Victor Osimhen, has spoken candidly about his early years in Lagos, recounting the odd jobs he took on to support himself before beginning his professional career.

In a recently released interview with broadcaster Daddy Freeze, Osimhen detailed how he performed various small tasks—including fetching water and cleaning gutters—for minimal pay while growing up in the densely populated Olusosun area of Lagos.

Speaking in the interview, the Super Eagles forward described a time when he earned between N30 and N80 for cleaning household gutters or fetching water for tenants in a nearby apartment block.

“There was a building in front of my house, like a face-me-I-face-you,” he explained. “I used to fetch water for people upstairs for N80, and sometimes I cleaned the gutters, even when green things were coming out of it.”

Osimhen’s comments offer a glimpse into the difficult living conditions that shaped his early years, long before he rose to become one of Nigeria’s most prominent football exports. The Napoli striker is currently among the highest-paid African players in European football.

The conversation has resonated widely on social media, with many users pointing to Osimhen’s story as an example of perseverance and resilience in the face of economic hardship. (The Guardian)