Joseph Oluwaseyi Temitope Ayodele-Aribo is a Football player representing Southampton in the Premier League as a midfielder.
Biography
Joe Aribo was born on July 21, 1996, in Camberwell, England. He was born to Nigerian immigrants who hailed from Ondo State. They relocated to England in search of greener pastures. His parents were uneducated and had to do menial jobs to survive in London. They also struggled financially to keep the family afloat.
Career
Aribo played for Staines Town in the Isthmian League Premier Division under Marcus Gayle, and in April 2014, he was named the academy player of the year.
Aribo successfully trialled with Charlton Athletic in September 2015, and in May 2016, he agreed to a one-year contract. He made his first-team debut on October 16, 2016, at The Valley, in a 2-0 loss to Crawley Town in an EFL Trophy group stage game, replacing Andrew Crofts in the 62nd minute. He replaced Fredrik Ulvestad in the 70th minute of his team’s 2-0 loss to Peterborough United on December 17 in the EFL League One, and six days later, he extended his contract until 2019.
On November 1, 2017, Aribo scored the first goal of his professional career, the game-winning goal in a 3-2 EFL Trophy group-stage victory over Fulham under-21 at home. He scored four more goals during the season, including two on April 2, 2018, in a 3-1 victory over Rotherham United to help the Addicks reach sixth place and the playoff. His first league goal came on December 23, opening a 1-1 draw with Blackpool at The Valley.
As Charlton finished third in 2018–19, Aribo scored in the final three games, helping the team win over Scunthorpe United, Gillingham, and Rochdale. He later scored in a 2-1 victory away at Doncaster Rovers in the opening leg of the playoff semifinals on May 12 to help his team ultimately win promotion.
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Aribo turned down Charlton’s offer of a new contract at the end of the 2018–19 campaign in favour of signing a four-year contract with Scottish Premiership team Rangers. On July 9, 2019, he made his club’s competitive debut in a 4-0 victory over St. Joseph’s of Gibraltar in the Europa League; eight days later, in the second leg at Ibrox, he opened a 6-0 victory. He was injured in the head by Livingston’s Ricki Lamie on September 25 and removed from the game after 20 minutes. He required 20 stitches and was sidelined for a month. On his return to Almondvale, he scored his first league goal in a 2-0 victory on November 10.
Aribo scored seven goals during Rangers’ title-winning 2020–21 campaign, including two on November 8 in an 8–0 victory over Hamilton Academical. During a 3-0 victory at Livingston in May, he was singled out for praise by manager Steven Gerrard for filling in as an emergency left-back due to Borna Barii’s absence: “In the three years that I have been here, that left-performance back’s is the best we have seen. So kudos to him for putting aside his ego and performing admirably for his teammates.”
Aribo played 17 Europa League games for Rangers in 2021–22 as they finished runners-up. On May 18, in the 1–1 final draw with Eintracht Frankfurt, he opened the scoring before Rangers lost on penalties. He participated in 57 games across all competitions. He scored nine goals and assisted 10.
Gernot Rohr, Super Eagles coach, called up Aribo for a friendly match against Ukraine in August 2019. On September 10 in Dnipro, he made his professional debut and scored in the fourth minute of the 2-2 tie. He also scored the Super Eagles’ goal in Singapore on October 13 during a friendly match against Brazil.
Aribo participated in two group-stage victories and Tunisia’s 1-0 elimination from the final 16 of the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon.
On July 9, 2022, Aribo joined Southampton after signing a four-year contract with them.
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Club
Aribo is currently signed to Premier League club, Southampton. He signed a four-year contract with them on July 9, 2022.
Trophies
While at the Rangers, he was awarded the Rangers Young Player of the Season in the 2019/20 season. He was also awarded the club’s Goal of the Season in the same season.
Net worth
While playing for Rangers, he was the fifth most expensive player. Jermain Defoe, one of Rangers’ 58 players, earned the most money, taking home £65,000 a week, while Aribo made £8,100 a week and £421,200 a year.
According to estimates, Joe Aribo’s net worth ranges from $1 million to $5 million and is primarily derived from his football career.
Family
Joe Aribo’s relationship life is very private. We don’t know whether he is in a relationship or not. However, sources state that he is single.
Conclusion
Aribo is a skilled player who can operate in either a central or wide midfield position. Technically sound, he can efficiently use his long legs to block opponents from getting to the ball. Speaking in October 2016, he claimed that moving up the pitch and driving with the ball were his skills.
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