Saibo Saidy: The Boy Who Lived with 17 Dogs Before Earning His European Dream

By Foday Fo Manneh

For many young footballers, the dream of playing in Europe begins on manicured pitches and in organised academies. For Saibo Saidy, it began deep in the bush, with hunting seventy (17) dogs by his side and the weight of helping his family survive.

The 20-year-old Gambian defender has completed a permanent move to Slovak top-flight side FK Železiarne Podbrezová from Finnish club Mikkelin Palloilijat, marking another remarkable chapter in one of Gambian football’s fastest-rising careers.

What makes the achievement even more extraordinary is the speed of his journey. Saibo only left The Gambia in October 2025 when he signed for Swedish side Vasalund IF. Less than a year later, he has already secured moves to his second and now third European club, underlining his rapid development and growing reputation.

Yet behind the transfer lies a story far greater than football.

Saibo was born into a family in Garawol village in the Upper River Region of The Gambia, whose livelihood depended entirely on seasonal farming. Unlike commercial farmers who cultivate crops to generate income, his family’s harvest was simply a means of survival. Every planting season was a battle to ensure there would be enough food on the table and that the children would not go to bed hungry.

Life offered little comfort.

Away from the football field, Saibo developed an unusual passion for raising dogs. He initially kept five at the family compound, but as the number grew, his family objected. Determined to continue, he built a small mud shelter in the backyard of his village and moved there with another dozen dogs.

“I built a small mud house in the backyard of the village where I live with these dogs. I only go home during sleeping hours at night,” he recalled.

The dogs were more than companions. They became hunting partners. Almost every day, Saibo ventured into the bush in search of bush meat, hoping to bring food home for his family. It was a life defined by survival rather than leisure.

“I don’t even know anything about friendship. I don’t know girls. I don’t date. My life has all been the bush and the field.”

His world revolved around only two places: the bush and the football pitch. During the rainy season, however, football gave way to farming as he joined the rest of the family in cultivating the land.

Football nearly slipped through his fingers before it had even begun.

His first opportunity to join Wagadu came during a scouting exercise, but his coaches never gave him the chance to play. For many, that disappointment would have ended the dream.

Saibo refused to surrender.

The following year, his village selected him for an inter-village tournament. This time, he needed only two matches to convince scouts of his talent, earning a move to Gambian second-division side Wagadu Football Club.

The breakthrough transformed his life.

His three brothers made their own sacrifice, taking on more responsibilities at home so he could dedicate himself fully to football despite the family’s financial struggles.

“During the off-season, when I return home, they don’t force me to work anymore. They allow me to rest unless I decide by myself to go and help on the farm. I still do because this is where I come from.”

Saibo remains deeply grateful to everyone who helped shape his journey.

“I joined Wagadu, and I will always be grateful to them for giving me the platform to express myself before moving to Medical FC and then Bombada FC.”

Those performances eventually opened the doors to Gambia National U23 team and Europe, first in Sweden, then Finland, and now Slovakia, where he hopes to establish himself at one of the country’s leading clubs.

His rise is a powerful reminder that talent can emerge from the most unlikely places. Behind every successful footballer is often a story of sacrifice, resilience and unwavering belief.

For Saibo Saidy, that story was written between the bush and the football field.

Today, it continues on the pitches of Europe, carrying with it the hopes of a family that once relied on seasonal farming simply to survive and a young man who never forgot where he came from.