Mayowa Abeshina ought to, actually, be at work. It’s the center of Sunday afternoon, and he has not but completed his shift on the barbershop. He’s right here, clad in a red-and-white Arsenal jersey, solely by the great grace of his boss. Nicely, grace is one phrase. Resignation is one other. “I took a break for the love of the sport,” Mr. Abeshina stated. “The supervisor is aware of this. He’s not new to the routine.”
Many West Africans reside to the rhythm of European soccer, with largely male crowds massing exterior bars, hair salons, road eating places — any institution, in the end, with a display — to observe idols taking part in 1000’s of miles away. Actual Madrid, Barcelona and Paris St.-Germain all have appreciable followings within the area, however in Nigeria, nothing matches the enchantment of the Premier League.
On recreation days, followers of all stripes flock to viewing facilities — road venues geared up with a number of screens, a jigsaw puzzle of picket benches, a thicket of wires and a cover to dam out the solar and scale back the glare — just like the one Mr. Abeshina and his mates descended on to soak up his beloved Arsenal’s assembly with Tottenham Hotspur.
Mr. Abeshina turned an Arsenal fan within the late Nineties, when Nigerian cable channels first started broadcasting the Premier League. His older brother instructed him on which staff he ought to assist, at a time when Nwankwo Kanu, considered one of Nigeria’s biggest stars, was a fixture within the staff’s lineup.
If something, although, Mr. Abeshina says his connection to the staff is even deeper now. Arsenal’s academy is stacked with English prospects of Nigerian ancestry. One of many membership’s brightest stars, Bukayo Saka, grew up in a Nigerian household in London. “He’s Yoruba, I’m Yoruba,” Mr. Abeshina stated, in a tone moderately softer than that with which he celebrated his idol’s first-half aim in opposition to Spurs.
