Victor Osimhen Recounts Struggling Days at Olusosun Ahead of Champions League Night for Galatasaray
- Victor Osimhen has recounted his difficult upbringing in the neighbourhood of Olusosun in Lagos
- The Galatasaray forward grew up in abject poverty as the last child of a family of seven children in a remote area
- Osimhen is looking forward to a big UEFA Champions League night with Galatasaray against AFC Ajax
Super Eagles forward Victor Osimhen has recounted his experience growing up in the remote neighbourhood of Olusosun in Lagos state, Nigeria.
Osimhen was the lastborn of seven children and had a difficult upbringing in a one-room apartment in Lagos, which shaped his drive in life.
Source: Getty Images
The striker has become a household name in African football and globally, and his energy on the pitch resonates with his background and upbringing.
He is currently starring for Galatasaray in the Turkish Super League and leading the club’s charge in the UEFA Champions League as they target a deep run.
Osimhen recounts childhood experience
Osimhen, speaking to UEFA TV ahead of the Champions League match against Ajax, has looked back at moments of his life that shaped his future.
He dealt with the unfortunate death of his parents within years of finding a breakthrough in football, which was one of the lowest moments in his life.
“I came from a very poor background. I'm the lastborn of seven. I lost my mum at a very young age, and my father passed on in 2020,” he said.
“Before I rose to fame, before I became someone important in life, my childhood was really tough because, as a young lad, I had to try to live for myself, to try to help my siblings also in raising money at that time and to make sure that we all came together to help our father after his wife passed away.”
Osimhen grew up in the slum of Olusosun, the largest dumpsite in Africa, showing how rough his childhood was, but he took bold lessons from there.
“Olusosun shaped me to become the kind of person I am today, and, as much as I wouldn’t say it gave me so much, it actually taught me life lessons that have helped me through life’s journey,” he added.
“So, for me, it’s really an amazing place; that’s the reason why any time I’m in Nigeria, I always go there to show gratitude, to show the young kids that if I could make it out of this place, I believe that you can.”
Source: Getty Images
The boy who came through poverty now earns a net ₦38 billion salary per annum, as noted by Galatasaray's official website, and can afford a good life for himself.
He is highly revered and celebrated by Galatasaray fans after joining the club permanently last summer, a gesture which pushes him to give his all.
Osimhen shares moment with his daughter
Legit.ng previously reported that Osimhen shared a moment with his daughter and taught her how to swim during their vacation at his mansion in Lagos.
The striker, on many occasions, has claimed that he works hard to give his daughter the life he didn't have while growing up in a slum in Lagos.
Source: Legit.ng
