Heartwarming footage shows the moment a seven-year-old girl was left screaming with delight after receiving a personal birthday message from Arsenal player Alessia Russo.
Naomi Abehsera, 16, from north-west London, surprised her little sister, Abby, with a teddy bear containing a recorded voice message from Russo, wishing her a happy birthday.
Naomi had the voice note loaded on to a device and sewn into the bear, which she gave to her sister along with a signed shirt from Russo, her favourite footballer.
Naomi shared a clip of her sister’s reaction on X, formerly Twitter, which showed her screaming after realising the personalised message was from the 24-year-old Arsenal forward.
“She was so happy," said 16-year-old Naomi. "She was very emotional. At first, she was just in genuine disbelief.
“She wouldn’t leave the bear or the top…she didn’t want to go to school, she just wanted to stay with the Alessia bear.
“At night, she was with the bear and she started crying with happiness.”
Glad you enjoyed your birthday Abby♥️ Hope you had the loveliest day✨ https://t.co/ovJfobQDFl
— Alessia Russo (@alessiarusso7) November 30, 2023
The message left by Russo said: “Hi Abby, happy birthday. Hope you have a lovely day.”
In her post on X, Naomi asked her followers to tag Russo in the hope she might see the video but was “shocked” to see the footballer repost the footage, which had reached over 300,000 views as of Monday.
Russo shared the heartwarming video on X, writing: "Glad you enjoyed your birthday Abby Hope you had the loveliest day".
Naomi said the gift from Russo was particularly meaningful as the footballer is an inspiration to Abby.
She explained: “For little girls, it’s more than just players, especially Abby, she wants to be a footballer.
“They look up to these players so much, and to be recognised by them must mean so much to them.”
Naomi, who also plays football, began watching the Arsenal Women’s team and the Lionesses to help her through a knee injury, which prompted her to introduce Abby to the sport.
“At first [Abby] actually said to me, ‘girls can’t play football’ because you don’t know that unless it’s being represented,” Naomi said.
“During the Euros, we watched all the matches together, and that’s when Abby really clicked with them and from day one Alessia has always been one of her favourites.”
The gift idea began after Naomi pitched the idea of recording Russo’s voice into a toy after a Continental Cup match against Arsenal Women and Bristol City Women in November.
“[Russo] said it was a really cool idea, so she recorded a video saying happy birthday,” Naomi explained.
Two weeks later at an away match in Brighton, Naomi said Russo walked over to her after the game and called the bear “so cute” before signing the stuffed toy and offering a signed shirt she had worn.
Following the viral moment, Naomi wanted to extend her gratitude to the footballer, calling her "an amazing role model" for the younger generation.
“[Russo is] such a real player," said the A-level student. "She really does connect with her fans and takes the time to speak to them and meet them.
“She’s just so much more than just a football player…she’s just very inspirational for loads of little kids who want to be football players.
“She’s an amazing role model, and just thank you and never stop the fan appreciation because it means a lot more than players realise," she added.
