Joe Aribo

Joseph Oluwaseyi Temitope Ayodele-Aribo (born 21 July 1996) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Southampton and the Nigeria national team.

He began his club career at Staines Town then spent four years with Charlton Athletic in the English Football League. In 2019 he signed for Rangers, where he won the Scottish Premiership in 2021 and the Scottish Cup in 2019, and was part of their squad for the Africa Cup of Nations in 2021 and 2023, finishing as runner-up in the latter tournament.

Club career

Staines Town

Aribo played for Staines Town under Marcus Gayle in the Isthmian League Premier Division, winning the club's academy player of the year award in April 2014.

Charlton Athletic

Aribo joined Charlton Athletic in September 2015 following a successful trial, and signed a one-year contract in May 2016. He made his first-team debut as a 62nd-minute substitute for Andrew Crofts in a 2–0 defeat to Crawley Town in an EFL Trophy group stage match at The Valley on 16 October 2016. His EFL League One debut came on 17 December in a 2–0 home loss to Peterborough United as a 70th-minute replacement for Fredrik Ulvestad, and six days later he extended his contract until 2019.

Aribo scored his first career goal on 1 November 2017, the winner in a 3–2 home win over Fulham under-21 in the EFL Trophy group stage. His first league goal on 23 December opened a 1–1 draw with Blackpool at The Valley; he netted four more goals over the season to help the Addicks to sixth place and the playoffs, including two on 2 April 2018 in a 3–1 win against Rotherham United.

Aribo scored in each of the last three games of 2018–19 as Charlton came third, contributing to wins over Scunthorpe United, Gillingham and Rochdale. On 12 May, he then netted in a 2–1 win away to Doncaster Rovers in the first leg of the playoff semi-finals, as his team eventually were promoted.

Rangers

Aribo was offered a new contract by Charlton at the end of the 2018–19 season, but he instead opted to sign a four-year deal with Scottish Premiership club Rangers. He made his competitive debut for the club on 9 July 2019 in a 4–0 win over St Joseph's of Gibraltar in the Europa League; eight days later in the second leg he scored his first goal to open a 6–0 win at Ibrox. On 25 September, he suffered a head wound from Livingston's Ricki Lamie and was taken off after 20 minutes, receiving 20 stitches and being ruled out for a month; on his return to Almondvale he scored his first league goal in a 2–0 win on 10 November.

Aribo contributed seven goals to Rangers' 2020–21 title-winning season, including two in an 8–0 win over Hamilton Academical on 8 November. In May, he was singled out for praise by manager Steven Gerrard due to Borna Barišić's absence in a 3–0 win at Livingston: "That left-back performance is as good as we have seen in my three years that I have been here. So well done to him for parking his ego and doing a fantastic job for his teammates".

In 2021–22, Aribo played 17 Europa League games as Rangers finished runners-up, and he opened the scoring in the 1–1 final draw against Eintracht Frankfurt on 18 May before defeat on penalties. In all competitions, he played 57 games, scored nine goals and assisted 10.

Southampton

On 9 July 2022, Aribo joined Southampton and signed a four-year contract. On 6 August 2022, Aribo made his Premier League debut in Southampton's 4–1 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur. A week later, Aribo scored his first goal for the club in their 2–2 draw against Leeds United. In his first season with Southampton, the club were relegated from the Premier League.

On 26 December 2023, Aribo scored his first goal of the 2023–24 season in a 5–0 victory against Swansea City. He played in the 2024 EFL Championship play-off final against Leeds United on 26 May 2024, which ended in a 1–0 victory for Southampton and secured promotion to the Premier League. Aribo played 49 matches and scored four goals in all competitions during the 2023–24 season.

International career

In August 2019, Aribo was called up by Nigeria manager Gernot Rohr for a friendly away to Ukraine. He made his debut in the game in Dnipro on 10 September, and scored in the fourth minute of the 2–2 draw. On 13 October, he scored the Super Eagles' goal in a friendly draw with Brazil in Singapore.

At the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon, Aribo played two group-stage wins and the 1–0 last-16 elimination by Tunisia.

Style of play

Aribo is a versatile player who can play centrally or in a wide midfield role. Technically proficient, he is able to use his long legs to shield the ball from opponents effectively. Speaking in October 2016, he said that his strengths were "driving with the ball and getting up the pitch".

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list Nigeria's goal tally first.''

Honours

Charlton Athletic
*EFL League One play-offs: 2019

Rangers
*Scottish Premiership: 2020–21
*Scottish Cup

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