Arsenal player Bukayo Saka has taken some time off and selected Lagos as his vacation destination after a difficult Premier League season.
Saka has been sighted in Lagos’ Bariga neighborhood visiting an orphanage as other players enjoy a well-earned vacation in the Bahamas or the Maldives after a grueling football season.
Saka has always been expected to wear the green and white of the Super Eagles, but he opted to represent England, the nation where he was born. Saka was born in the United Kingdom to Nigerian parents of Yoruba ethnic descent.
Despite his decision to forego playing for the Nigerian senior national team, he has been active in charitable work in Nigeria.
While visiting the Bales of Mercy Orphanage, which was established to care for the needs of abandoned and destitute children around Lagos, Saka, who recently debuted the new Arsenal and Adidas home jerseys for the 2023–24 season, was spotted on Thursday in Somolu dressed in an all-white traditional senator outfit.
The 21-year-old posted a video of himself on his official Instagram profile welcoming Nigerians in the streets of Lagos in the Yoruba native language before expressing his gratitude for the warm welcome. The young man shared his experiences with others on social media.
In his caption of the post, He wrote, “E kuule o! (which is a simple way of announcing your home-coming in Yoruba custom i.e. “I’m back” or “I’m back home). Thank you for the warm welcome.”
Saka also went to the Lagos branch of the Nigerian Red Cross Society. In collaboration with the youth organization BigShoe, the Arsenal star paid for 120 children’s surgeries in Kano State in November 2022.
Before leaving, he is anticipated to take part in a meet & greet with his admirers. Saka and his supporters will surely remember this conversation fondly.
During his visit to Lagos, reports indicate that Saka will meet with Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the two-term executive governor of Lagos State, as well as a number of senior government officials.
Saka was instrumental in helping Arsenal finish in second place in the Premier League, and as a result, he just signed a new deal through 2028, which included a substantial pay raise that made him the highest-paid player at the North London club.
Before coming back to England for the UEFA Nations League and the 2023–24 preseason, he is anticipated to spend a few weeks there.