Africa's Richest Man Claims First Thing He'd Do Is Sack Arsene Wenger if He Buys Arsenal

Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote has controversially claimed that if he was Arsenal's owner, he would fire manager Arsene Wenger from the post he has been in since 1996.

Dubbed 'Africa's richest man', Dangote is apparently keen to buy the north London club and says the first thing he'd do if he was successful would be to oust the Frenchman, who finds himself under the cosh once again following defeat at Stoke City.

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Dangote is worth $11.1b, and has supposedly coveted Arsenal since becoming a fan in the late 1980s. He has revealed he will think about making an offer to buy the Emirates outfit once the construction of his oil refinery in Lagos is completed towards the end of the decade.

Should Dangote leave things till then, he might not have to worry about firing Wenger since the 67-year-old is only on a two-year deal, but it is hard to say at this stage to say that he won't still be in charge.

Hypothetically speaking, Dangote said, as quoted by Bloomberg: "The first thing I would change is the coach. He has done a good job, but someone else should also try his luck."

Arsenal's current biggest shareholder is 'Silent' Stan Kroenke, who owns 67% of the club, with Russian Alisher Usmanov holding a smaller 30% stake.

Of the duo, Dangote added: "If they get the right offer, I’m sure they would walk away. 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.

"It’s a great team, well-run. It could be run better, so I will be there. I will wait. Even if things change I will take it."