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He's the boy from Burundi who arrived with nothing and may now have the world at his feet.

But Gael Bigirimana will never forget his roots and defiantly remains the antidote to most people’s perception of the modern-day Premier League footballer.

Not for the Newcastle United first-teamer, a BMW or Bentley. He drives a modest Corsa and his choice of motor tells you everything you need to know about “Bigi”.

He left his homeland as a refugee when a civil war saw Kalashnikov-toting rebels taking on Government forces.

It was so dangerous his mum Esperance, 46, was forced to flee, leaving husband Bonnet, 52, to care for Bigi and his three siblings. She did not see them again for four years, settling in Coventry.

Bigi fled to Uganda, and was 10 by the time he joined her in the UK where his big break came when his mum sent him to Asda for milk. Seeing Coventry City’s training ground, he went to ask for a trial. Scouts laughed at the cheeky lad, but were so impressed with his turn of pace as he left they made sure he came back.

Bigi said: “I went to the reception at the training ground but my English wasn’t very good so they sent me to the scouts, Ray Gooding and Reece Brown. I told them I didn’t have a team because I’ve just moved to England. They said when I got to school and got in the team, they would come and watch me. I was overjoyed. But when I was jogging away, they stopped me then and there and told me to come back the next day. They explained to me later they saw athletic speed, but I was not really running! I went on trial, then they signed me.”

He moved to Newcastle last summer, a teen sensation already tipped for the top by Alan Pardew after his first Premier League goal, a 25-yard strike in a 3-0 home win over Wigan.

But it is not just Bigi’s abilities on the pitch which make him special. His lifestyle could not be further removed from the nightclubs, WAGs and hedonistic behaviour associated with many footballers.

A star of the Magpies’ various community projects, he volunteers to visit schools so youngsters can learn from his life story, to see you can get a chance with the right attitude and talent.

Kids listen to his tales of life back home, where his parents would take in waifs and strays from the streets of Burundi’s capital Bujumbura.

Before the civil war, 12 people shared the Bigirimana home, a room in a house on a dusty street where he spent his early years honing the skills which were to propel him 4,500 miles to St James’ Park.

Bigi has the world at his feet now but says: “We did not have any boots to play in when I was little so I played in bare feet on the dirt streets. There was no grass.

“It was very competitive as well, each area would make up teams and we would all compete in a league at seven-a-side on a little pitch.

“We used to see the Champions League games in Burundi and I used to support Real Madrid because I thought they were so good.

“We all played football, even my little sister, and she was very good!”

Nana, 21, and brothers Passy, 25, and Ya Ye, 23, are living with Bigi and their parents in a five-bedroom house.

Even here, they maintain the family tradition of helping others - cousin Ibrahim Ibrahim, 22, has moved in, brother-in-law Luis Romero, 23, is resident while he studies for his soccer coaching badge, and Passy’s baby son Romeo, 18 months, is there too.

“We had to get out of Burundi when the civil war began,” said Bigi, who has just turned 19. “My mum left first and her sister brought her to England when I was six or seven. I did not see her again for four years. We had to get to a country that was safe and at first that was Uganda for us, for my mother it was England.

“Growing up we would all support each other. My dad was a town planner, my mum braided hair, my brother worked in a shop, even when I was little I would run errands for the local shop.

“By Burundi standards, we were doing well so we would take people in, help them, we had 12 people in our one room at one stage, uncles, aunts, family, friends.

“It wasn’t just because my mum and dad are religious. It was out of the goodness of their hearts. That is how they have taught me.

“We did not have a lot of money, but we always tried to help others.”

It is an ethos which he intends to follow even as he rubs shoulders with the multi-millionaires of the Premier League.

He says: “We are all human. It is not my place to judge. Sometimes it is not easy, players are not robots or machines. We are expected to be perfect but we all have low times as well as highs. With all the attention, and praise, sometimes it can go to your head.

“You have to make sure you don't lose touch with reality. A footballer is blessed with a God-given talent that brings happiness to people. We need to share that gift.”

He already has an eye on the future, opening a barber shop in Coventry, called Bigi's Snippers and Clippers, with a Newcastle branch in the pipeline. He loves learning languages, and jokes there is a mixture of English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish at home.

His family is set to join fellow Toon star Shola Ameobi and his family at their church, to do more work in the community.

“My parents taught me to think of others,” said Bigi. “They showed me life is not all about yourself. They wanted to see people in peace, so they took them in and treated them like family.

“That is how I have grown up, and so, if I can, I go into the community and schools to give something back. We all go through bad times and I cannot convince everyone but I can show them how I overcame my problems and help them reach their potential.

“That is my aim, I believe God has put me in this place to help people.

“That is what I’ll do.”