Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, worth just shy of $13bn, has laid out his desire to buy Arsenal within the next four years in order to “turn it around”.
The Nigerian magnate, who made his money in cement, sugar and flour, declared his intentions to purchase the North London side last year and, speaking to Bloomberg, has now detailed his plan towards owning the club.
“Maybe three to four years. The issue is that we have more challenging headwinds. I need to get those out the way first and start having tailwinds. Then I’ll focus on this,” said the 59-year-old, who has ongoing investments in oil and gas.
“It’s not about buying Arsenal and just continuing with business as usual,” he added.
“It’s about buying Arsenal and turning it around. I’ve run a very successful business and I think I can also run a very successful team. Right now, with what we’re facing, over $20 billion of projects, I cannot do both.”
According the Gunners fan, “There’s no doubt” he’ll own the club and that “it’s not a problem” of money.
Should he purchase the club, Dangote would become the first African national to own a Premier League side, and it looks as if the club could be in for a bit of a shake up in terms of spending on and off the pitch.