Rwandan President and Arsenal fan Paul Kagame has vented his frustration at the club’s shock defeat by a newly promoted club on the opening day of the English Premier League season.
Brentford, after a 74-year absence from top-tier football, beat Arsenal 2-0.
Mr Kagame often comments on the Gunners – a club sponsored by his government.
We just must NOT excuse or Accept mediocrity. A team has to be built with purpose to win win win. So that when we lose….it was not to be expected! I am sure we all know on whose shoulders the heaviest burden rests. I hope they know too or even accept it!!! End
— Paul Kagame (@PaulKagame) August 13, 2021
After Friday’s away game, he tweeted: “We just must NOT excuse or Accept mediocrity. A team has to be built with purpose to win win win.”
In two further rapid-fire tweets, he demanded “a plan that really works” and lamented that “fans don’t deserve to kind of get used to this”.
Since 2018, the Rwandan government has had a controversial sponsorship deal worth more than £30m ($42m), which involves a “Visit Rwanda” logo displayed on Arsenal shirt sleeves.
Critics have said it is an example of the authoritarian leader of a poor, African country subsidising a wealthy football club. But the Rwandan government says the sponsorship more than pays for itself over in tourism revenue.
