It is payback time for Liberian President, George Oppong Weah, as he awards his former football coach, Arsène Wenger, his country’s highest honour, saying after God, the French talisman comes next.
The football legend, the only African ever to have been named World Player of the Year, was signed by Wenger in 1988 when he coached Monaco, in the French Ligue.
President Weah said that Wenger “took care of me like his son” when he went to Monaco, adding that “besides God, I think that without Arsène, there was no way I would have made it in Europe”.
Wenger has returned the compliment, calling the president’s life story “a miracle”.
“I remember when I saw him the first time at Monaco, coming in a bit lost, not knowing anybody, not being rated by anybody as a player and becoming the best player in the world in 1995 and today becoming the president of his country,” he told journalists in January.
Wenger, who stepped down as Arsenal manager in May after 22 years, nurtured several African stars.
Weah retired from football in 2003 and went into politics. He won last year’s election by a landslide.
Wenger is expected to be in Liberia’s capital, Monrovia, for the award ceremony on Friday, Liberia’s Information Minister Eugene Nagbe told the BBC.
He will be inducted into the country’s Order of Distinction and be given the title of Knight Grand Commander of the Humane Order of African Redemption – the highest rank possible.
The news has generated controversy in Liberia, with some saying that the honour should not be given to an individual for what they have done for the president personally. But the award is not only about the personal connection between the president and Wenger, the information minister said – it also recognises that he “has contributed to sports in Africa and has given many Africans opportunities”.
At Arsenal, Wenger coached 16 African players , including Ivory Coast’s Kolo Toure, Cameroon defender Lauren and Nigeria’s Nwankwo Kanu.