Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote has once again unveiled his plan to buy Arsenal in the future, although this is not the first time he has done so.

Africa’s richest man, who is worth around $10bn (£7.7bn) according to Forbes, has long been interested in taking over the Gunners. The 62-year-old made his fortune through cement but his plans to invest in the north London club are far from concrete just yet.

Dangote told Bloomberg’s The David Rubinstein Show of his interest in Arsenal: ‘It is a team that yes I would like to buy some day, but what I keep saying is we have $20billion worth of projects and that’s what I really want to concentrate on.

‘I’m trying to finish building the company and then after we finish, maybe some time in 2021 we can. ‘I’m not buying Arsenal right now, I’m buying Arsenal when I finish all these projects, because I’m trying to take the company to the next level.’

Before Arsenal fans get too excited about a vast injection of wealth, Dangote told Reuters in July 2018: ‘We will go after Arsenal from 2020…even if somebody buys, we will still go after it.’ That move failed to materialise.

The Nigerian was even speaking about Arsenal a year before that, saying in 2017 that he expects the current Arsenal ownership to leave when he presents his offer. ‘If they get the right offer, I’m sure they would walk away,’ he said. ‘Someone will give them an offer that will make them seriously consider walking away. ‘And when we finish the refinery, I think we will be in a position to do that.’ Dangote Refinery will be one of the largest oil refineries on the planet when it is built.

Soka25east.com