Monday, December 23, 2024

Report: Usmanov made $1.3bn bid for Kroenke’s shares

The Financial Times are reporting that Alisher Usmanov made a bid for Stan Kroenke’s Arsenal shareholding last month, tabling a bid worth $1.3bn.

The report says that Usmanov, “…conveyed the offer in a letter to Stan Kroenke, the US sports mogul, who controls a 67 per cent stake.

“The approach, made last month, valued the club at $2bn. Mr Kroenke has yet to formally respond.

“He is understood not to have dismissed the idea out of hand at first. However, he has since informally indicated he is not interested in selling to Mr Usmanov or anyone else.”

The Uzbeki oligarch has been very much an outsider since he began buying shares. He currently holds a 30.04% stake, but has not been offered a place on the board.

He and Kroenke are not on speaking terms, and it’s understood the American would never sanction a sale to Usmanov, even if it meant a large profit.

Kroenke has been under more scrutiny than he might have liked in recent times, his silence has been deafening during the difficult period of this season, and there is certainly an appetite amongst Arsenal fans for a change of ownership.

Whether Usmanov is the right man is very much open to debate, he’s currently benefiting from being ‘not Kroenke’, but perhaps this might encourage others to test the majority shareholder’s resolve.

The FT report says that other bidders are circling, and Arseblog News understands that this is definitely the case, with some serious plans underway elsewhere.

With ongoing issues with the building of a new stadium in LA, and the likelihood of more fan pressure, it will be interesting to see what happens over the next few weeks.

It looks like the multi-billion dollar gloves are coming off in the battle for Arsenal.

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Lord Bendnter

How I’m feeling right now: “Quit playin games with my heart”

Mein Bergkampf

So the choice is between a blood sucking, tax dodging, morally corrupt sociopath and a Russian oligarch. What a time to be alive!

thw14

That’s fair. Makes you wish for the old school cold blooded tax dodging millionaire.

Speaking of, anyone seen David Dein?

Thaigoon

David was the real hero of Highbury. Loved Arsenal just went out each summer and brought bosses the right players. Brought Usmanov and Kroenke here so Usmanov would be the sugardaddy owner with American businessan Stan as a helping hand. When things went other way round he warned fans againts selling out to the American. But no Hollywood had made sure we all love USA and all Russians are bloody murderers. And yes we all know the Americans who didnt like what our lovely Dave saw in them got rid of him. Even blind fans talked shit about Dein and… Read more »

SG_Gooner

Did he bring Kroneke too?

Blame all the previous shareholders too for selling out.

Danny Fiszman put in money for bergkamp without being the main shareholder too…

Blame the greedy hillwood, bracewell et tel…

Piss on their graves man…

Arsene FC (Financial Cashcow)

Arsepedant

Choosing between those two is like having to choose whether you want to contract gonorrhea or syphilis.

RagingRoadkill

Actually the choice is clear: The one who likes our club. And that ain’t the beady eyed ‘Murican.

ClockEndRider

How do you figure that? What information is there that he “likes ” our club?

Alexisshorts

Take a look at other American owners who bought premier league clubs. Randy Lerner at Villa (relegated) Ellis Short at Sunderland (relegated) The Glazers at Man U (saddled them with huge debt even if they can shoulder it. But they shouldn’t be in that position.)
Kroenke Out!

SG_Gooner

Passive, money grabbing owners out, would be more apt my friend. 🙂

Bob\'s Mexican Cousin

Poisoned or shot! Lol

Gooooooooonnnnaaaaaaaaa

I don’t care who the owner is, just as long as it’s not Stan Kroenke and it’s someone who has some sort of football knowledge. If you think about it, what business does Kroenke have owning Arsenal? The guy knows nothing about “soccer” has no association or connection to England or the English culture, so what interest does he have in Arsenal other than to get his yearly dividends? The board since Kroenke has took over has been a JOKE, i just want to remind people it wasn’t Kroenke who built our stadium, he moved to Arsenal shortly after we… Read more »

SG_Gooner

yes, piss off yankee mustachio, and your 3mil dividends

B1G_D

Welcome to the modern capitalist society we live in. Even something that used to be pure, like 11 vs 11 and all the tribalism that entailed, has been diluted down with cold hard cash.

Steve

This sums it up perfectly.

Eric Blair

I would say it’s not even only cash, it’s power and status struggles between the super rich, the oligarchs, our new overlords. Money is not wealth itself, it is the route to wealth.

Clock-End Mike

Unfortunately, that was the path that Arsenal and a few other top clubs persuaded the rest of the old First Division to follow, when they broke away from the Football League and founded the Premier League. It was always about money.
Now we’re saddled with the escalating consequences (including the benefits, let’s be fair) of our greed back in the early 1990s.

Yankee Gooner

As an American citizen, I get to have both at the same time.

Vineet

Anyone would be better than Stan. The Russian is not that bad. I can’t believe everyone has bought into the propaganda that Usmanov will Rob off Arsenal morally and montarily. There is no actual indication that he would.

George

I think you meant to say: “So the choice is between a blood sucking, tax dodging, morally corrupt sociopath and an American billionaire/dude-rancher. What a time to be alive!”

richardanus

Really ? Who cares ? I mean, who really cares ? Is there a trophy for having a Saint own our club ?

Indiegooner

People are calling Kroenke an ‘owner’ – He’s only a majority share holder and if my understanding is correct, owns a shade under 70% of shares. Usmanov holds close to 30% and if he indeed buys up Kroenke’s piece, we might have something very close to an owner. While the story went well for chelski and mancs, there are cases like Blackburn, Malaga and Manc’s prior Thai owner who screwed up completely. Ideally, I feel we would do better if Kroenke sells up piecemeal so that we can go back to not having a single club owner or a majority… Read more »

Thaigoon

At least the Russian sees us as his favorite club not another business brand. And thats enough for me to choose him, no need to read into the current owners trophy cabinet or fan morale

Lord Bendtner

Wake me up in 10 years when Flamini the Billionaire/Philanthropist/BeautifulHumanBeing buys up all the shares

Julianski

This comment is even better because it’s from Lord Bendtner

Lord Bendtner

Please people, read Usmanov’s letter to the Arsenal board in 2012. I’m not sure if it truly represents his views or if it was just some power-war play. However, if you take it to mean what it truly says, then we should all be going head over heels for an Usmanov takeover…

ClockEndRider

A letter Tim the board which is in the public domain. Hmm, now let me think….

Billy Batts

Quit playing games with my Ars.

No wait…

ricardo

“I should have known from the start”

MTZ

I do not like Usmanov one bit, but I have to be honest: I’m in the “anyone but Kroenke” boat right about now. He clearly has no sporting ambitions for any of the clubs he owns. None whatsoever. That sort of mentality from the owner is contagious, and spreads to the rest of the club, as they aren’t required to perform at the highest level. Simply generating income and increasing the value of the club is considered good enough. Good quarterly results is all that matters in the business world, and that’s how Kroenke sees his clubs.

JustBrowsing

Agreed. He seems to accept mediocrity wherever he goes, does our Stan. This must filter through the club. Mr Abramovich is the other extreme and treats the club as his play thing and turns managers over quicker then a burger flipper. I’d hope Usmanov to be somewhere in the middle.. Thing is neither of them are perfect, but it will be interesting if he does succeed in the takeover, if he ‘puts his money where his mouth is’. I can’t see Stan selling to him, although his main aim seems to be to make money so you never know. It’s… Read more »

athreya

Surely Chelsea fans overwhelmingly support Roman. No big deal if he’s treated a few managers harshly. Anyone who fired Moaninho twice can’t be an awful person.

JohnH

Whilst I agree with you i would have to say that abramovich has brought tremendous success for Chelsea in his time as owner. Plaything would suggest a short term interest but he appears to be as invested as he was on day 1. Would I rather have the last 10 years that Chelsea have had (cuntiness included. They’re only despicable cunts if their not your cunts and arsenal can use some cunty player’s, different cunts from some of the cunts we have anyway) over the decade arsenal have had? In many respects yes I would.

JustBrowsing

The Chelsea fans view of him will really depend on what he does with the debt Chelsea owes him. A lot of the money he has pumped in is theoretically a loan to Chelsea (himself) until he moves on. Will he want it paid back? I agree he has certainly been committed and the success is undeniable. BUT I would just rather we keep as much of the class of our club as possible. We’re run with a certain level of consistency, okay it’s not been as successful thus far, but Abramovich is just success and to hell with anything… Read more »

PFo

Totally agree with this. And the desire for “class” includes class on the pitch, as well as how the club is run financially. Having a bit of steel, defensive nous, etc, is to be welcomed (and has been sorely lacking at times), but we all want to win by playing glorious football, as in the early years of Arsene’s reign. For the record, that doesn’t mean we wouldn’t take Chelsea’s cuntish success if it was a straight choice between that and the last 10 years of our mediocrity and frustration. The point is just that the ideal is “somewhere in… Read more »

GraeB

I think the view of Abramovic has changed over the years as fans see that, rather than just looking for a cash cow, he has actually been a fan and is there for every game. His decisions may have been fan-like radical on occasions but his heart is with the club. We see Kroenke what, twice a season? His USA clubs seem to have similar levels of disinterest, just looking to build his own fortune. I’m not sure Usmanov is the right owner either but if, it gets a bidding war going and a new owner in place who shows… Read more »

Andy

You talk of retaining our class. What class? It’s like referring to West Ham being the team that plays attractive football. It’s a relic from a bygone era. The board and the management have shown the fans absolutely no class over the last ten years. They moved us from our spiritual home! They delivered us an anodyne stadium with no atmosphere, sliced through the middle by an unengaged corporate band who are not diehard committed supporters! They charge us the highest ticket prices in world football! They serve up overpriced watered down beer and utterly shit food on match days!… Read more »

Faisal Narrage

Two facts
1. Roman has written off the majority of the debt Chelse owe him.
2. He said invested a lot in the academy. They may not get many players through the academy these days, but Chelsea academy are the best at every single age. At worst, it’s now a hedge fund for extra revenue (awful ad that may sound).

Adam

Cunts with integrity. Am I being too greedy here?

Liam Bradys left peg

Yes THIS but with more cunts.

rugrat

Not sure about ‘play thing’. Abramovich regularly watches his team play, does not tolerate poor performances, and is involved in club’s affairs – i would take him over silent stan any day!

Rob67

This. Kronke could have been fine as part of a trio or a quad at the top. By himself he has been awful. The guy has zero feel for Arsenal. He only cares for the balance sheet.

I am far from an Usmanov fan but at least he does watch the games regularly. He does seem to want us to win ?. That’s nice because so do many of the rest of us.

Sammy Dubzz

Hell yea

Twatsloch

1.2 billion dollars in your fuck off pocket ain’t a bad way to make money. I hope he takes it and fucks off. And then fucks off some more. And when he’s done that he can fuck off again.

Liam Bradys left peg

Yes THIS but with more fucks.

Godfrey Twatsloch

For the money to truly land in his account he must vow to remain in a state of fucking off from our club for the rest of his days. As decreed by Bergkamp.

Jack Action

I’ve come 180 on the idea of Usmanov taking over. I never wanted us to be like Chelsea or City… but Kroenke’s concerns extend only as far as the financial health of the club. I think Usmanov would be more ambitious because it would be a vanity thing for him. Please sell Stan.

Artem

Usmanov is close to Putin, pure mafia and also ManUtd supporter. Him and Kroenke are worth each other

Donald\'s Trump

Poo tin.

I have had no dealings or collusion with Usmanov. Bigly. Sad! Obama. Hilary emails and Ben Gazi. Believe me great guy Usmanov.

MC1892

Did a bit of research on him and it’s actually his wife who’s close to Putin, rather than him. He also gives a hell of a lot of money to charity, and he’s endeared himself to me with what he did with Tom Watson’s nobel peace prize (take a look, all on wikipedia). I don’t doubt some shady shit has gone on, but it’s easy to cast aspersions on someone based on rumour and the fact that they’re wealthy and from that area of the world. Seems like he’s put a fair shift in in terms of studying and work.… Read more »

MC1892

James Watson even..

SpamB0t

If he really is close to Putin, than he can ask his buddy to make Trump supporter Stan fork over the shares.

Rectum_Spectrum

do you think chelsea fans really give a fuck who owns them when sit in europa league and champions league finals, and think of the title and cups? Arsenal have been owned by a wealthy elite few for decades now, its just the earlier ones seemed to be more part of the club and genuinely loved being part of it. but then they were heady times where we dominated – would they be running things differently in this age? Usmanov actually appears to genuinely like arsenal from a footballing perspective, not see it as an ‘investment vehicle’. so why the… Read more »

jrock

Your sentiment was shared by many of my fellow Americans in regards to Clinton, and look where we are now. Basing decisions on hatred leads to the dark side.

Gooooooooonnnnaaaaaaaaa

I think Usmonov is unfairly criticised because he’s Russian, and as an Arab, I can tell you the new people the western media unfairly hate on are the Russians! I don’t see why where the man is from really matters, as long as he fits the criteria of what you’re looking for. From what I’ve heard from Usmanov (which has been minimal since he rarely ever speaks about Arsenal) he comes off as a man who has sporting ambitions, looks like he’s guinuinly bothered by the state our club is in, has been very vocal with his dissatisfaction of our… Read more »

Donald\'s Trump

It’s all Ivan Drago’s fault. If he didn’t try to cheat against great American hero, and great friend, Rocky Four, then everyone would like Russians.

My name is Jeff

So the options are remain under Kroenke and risk falling in Rams/Nuggets sporting irrelevance or becoming beholden to the whims of a oligarch. Yay.

Jdog

That’s top flight football buddy;) Welcome to what the premiership has become.

Rossi88

Usmanovn, Dein, and new board in….Vieira, Overmars, Henry, Bouldy, God back in….Wenger surrounded again by football people….oh what a dream.

Martin

Why are people against this ???????

Andy

Perhaps because the idea is based more on how people were as footballers rather than how they are as backroom staff. A change throughout does seem to be needed to push the club back to the top.

ClockEndRider

Because, for the umpteenth time: 1. When Usmanov bought his shares from Dein he said the first thing he would do when he became majority shareholder is institute an annual dividend. What indication does this give as to the level of his beneficence? 2. Dein is now 10 years older and further out of touch than when he left. 3. Where is the evidence that past players either give a fuck about the club which ultimately was just another employer for them, much less the evidence that any of them can coach, manage or indeed act as a meaningful football… Read more »

gmv8

At least he has spoken about Arsenal with passion – when has Kroenke EVER done that? A guy who owns the majority of the club, a dream to most supporters, it’s unbelievable. Also Kroenke takes out an annual dividend, he just masks it as ‘advisory services’. When asked what advice he has given, he says he doesn’t want to give away club strategies. With strategy like that, can we ask for a refund? £3.5m yearly for his advice, based on our performance since he joined, doesn’t seem good value for money. It would be good if we adopted the German… Read more »

arsenalista

Because we don’t want a crooked magnate running the club. Not an endorsement of crooked Stan either. They’re both really and horribly awful.

Faisal Narrage

You know you’re a bad owner when you managed to turn an entire fan group from anti- usmanov to pro usmanov.

All this talk of new bids from potential new owners, I’d like to hear who would the fans consider as an idea new owner of the club (excluding fan ownership, which we all know won’t happen)? Any billionaire arsenal fans out there?

I’d like to the Mark Cuban as an owner.

KanoGooner

Aliko Dangote, the Nigerian billionaire once showed interest in taking over. This is an opportunity for him to put his money where his mouth is.

Any idea on how the fans feel about him taking over?

Flyingmonkey

He is a legit gunner. Soo ya dangote will fit in well at the arsenal. Hope he keeps wenger

ClockEndRider

Yeah just what we need – an owner who has made his money in just about the most corrupt country on earth.

Swing

No more corrupt than the financial laundering centre the capital London

ClockEndRider

Oh dear. Do you actually believe that?

kaius

ClockEndRider, normally your views on football are excellent but that comment is both ignorant and uninformed.

ClockEndRider

Here come the pc brigade.

ClockEndRider

https://www.transparency.org/news/feature/corruption_perceptions_index_2016#table

Happy to be advised of contra evidence. No agenda from my side. Bullshit is bullshit, just goes by different names, as Mr Weller so presciently sang.

Sid

Dumbass comment!

Beauty of the game

Aliko dangote is presently building the largest oil refinery in Africa and will be too busy to buy Arsenal

Artem

The Queen?!

Original Paul

Elton John?

Gooner Bill

He’s a Watford man

athreya

Ivanka

Donald\'s Trump

Errrrrr…m feel like I have to upvote Ivanka.

Also just found out Trump’s first wife was called Ivana Trump. Can’t make it up.

Just needs one of the family to be called Anita.

Benriz

Ismelda?

Goonie

Apple have a trillion lying around somewhere :D…:/. But seriously, accepting Usmanov might be like selling your soul to the devil. He comes across as the complete opposite of Kroenke, a control freak. I want to know who else would table an offer.

G10

Elon Musk or Jeff Bezos (not arsenal fans but both great visionaries)

Crash Fistfight

Could Elon Musk install a hyperloop to get to and from the Emirates? People might not leave 10 minutes before the end of matches if their commute home took about 5 minutes.

Wenger\'s Pony

Mr Zuckerberg, spare some change for a football club.

Sean

Has Flamini’s energy company made him a billion yet? ?

andrei arshavin

It makes perfect sense and a good move for us (Fans). Finishing below 4th is not tied to our financial security, however it is a relevant metric to quantify our deteriorating position under Arsene. Also finishing below Sp*rs who are increasing their stadium capacity is a big blow. Kroenke needs to make a decision, if he continues and maintains status quo and nothing happens, there will be a Fan revolt. In fact I can sense that coming as soon as end of August 2017 when we loose our customary 2-3 games at the beginning of the season. Whether Kroenke sells… Read more »

Greg

Oh please god. A new ambitious owner and a new ambitious manager

Original Paul

Thumbed you up there Greg!

Raaja

Ffs please sell to him…

gunnerpete

to be fair, Kroenke hasn’t been on speaking terms with anyone.

Rob67

????

Artem

2 worst possible football shareholders, and both of them are Arsenal’s stakeholders… Disgusting human beings

Tiny

Ive supported Arsenal since being forced to as a child. First match in 1975. Love the club. The day that it is actually owned by Usmanov (who makes Abramovitch look like a choirboy) is the day I’m finished with the club.

Original Paul

Blimey Tiny! Was it Usmanov that forced you to do it?? 🙂

Tiny

Not at all. Arsenal supporting family. Glad they did it. Although I believe Usmanov has been convicted in the past of forcing people to do things. Although since acquitted of course.

Original Paul

I didn’t actually think it was..:-) Let’s hope someone else buys it.

Tiny

In fact it appears to be a matter of public record that he is not guilty of anything as per this Guardian article…

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/nov/19/russia.football

midgunner

Jesus, after reading that I think I’ll stick with kroenke

athreya

You’ve never grown up since 1975?

Original Paul

Maybe he was large in 1975 and has grown down since?

Tiny

I wish. Maybe its an ironic nickname because Im a fat twat!

Original Paul

On the plus side for you is I bet you are not as fat as Usmanov? 🙂

Spanish Gooner

I honestly don’t understand the Kroenke hate – obviously it would be nice to have a Sheikh Mansour pouring billions of ill gotten pounds into the club but assuming that is impossible surely an owner who doesn’t interfere in the football side of things and doesn’t take money out the club is the next best thing? Kroenke sanctioned big money deals last summer and probably will again this year. I would also like a new manager, but I feel there are very few owners in the world that would not have also retained Arsène until this year

Greg

Its the precedent he has set with every other sports organisation he owns

Spanish Gooner

That’s a fair comment

TheNicolau15

based on what? He’s investing a lot in the NFL, and I’ve been following the Denver Nuggets pretty close for the past 15 years and he always invested in the team, paying taxes for being over the salary cap with a “pretty good team” for more than 7 years, trying to win, being ambitious…. It’s not that I think he’s a great owner, but I just don’t see me supporting a club owned by Usmanov or anyone who would sent us to a “private” state. I think we have lovely values and philosophy, and these is what I love in… Read more »

Zombie Gooner

I honestly don’t understand your lack of understanding.

OnlyGoodInPractice

I get what you’re saying, but the problem with Kroenke is that he is stasis. He’s not going to drive the club into insolvency or relegation – but he also isn’t going to try to push the club to win anything. Just consistent mediocrity.

Adam

I can never understand how a billionaire like him has so little ambition. It’s like he doesn’t care about football at all.

Clive St Helmet

@Spanish Gooner: It’s in part due to his apparent lack of leadership, part due to him taking a total of £6 million out of the club so far. It is rumoured that Wenger was offered a new deal despite poor performances, so it would seem that there is not much focus on winning major trophies (The Premier League and Champion’s League) with the club. He’s not actually invested any of his own money into the club, except for the purchase of club shares. He seems to be relying on the club making money from the Premier League and indications are… Read more »

clins

even thought i understand the kroenke hate , i think we can overcome the lack of commitment by him to our club if there is atleast a proper structure in place behind the manager . financially we are a self sufficient club if not filthy rich , so we do have the resources to buy good players .so all we need is a passionate and efficient director of football who oversees the clubs results and a manager who is good at his job , and the results will pick up . thats why i’m so glad that finally arsenal is… Read more »

SpamB0t

It’s more to do with general incompetence of his clubs than lack of investment. I used to follow hockey quite regularly (I’ve kind of taken a break this year). The Avalanche’s problem hasn’t really been money. It’s that they’ve made stupid decision after stupid decision. They always had glimpses of genuine talent but it always petered out in the end. Their coaches ranged from outright incompetent to coach of the year, but in the end, they’d always end up failing. Their trades have recently been of the safe variety and they’ve had issues holding onto some of their home-grown talent… Read more »

Original Paul

The Financial Times are a much better source than The Metro and some others (my mate said?). Things are happening…good. COYG. 🙂

athreya

Please let this be true. Anyone but Kroenke.

Bendtner\'s ego

Active sports club owners? Go ask Blackburn supporters how that’s treating them.

Be careful what you wish for.

Kake

Or ask city, Chelsea, psg

TheNicolau15

Or Nothingan Forest… It’s not because something is bad, that we have to desperate and do worse.

Wright on the money

This Is the way football is going now like City and Chelsea. I hope that if he is accepted in as the majority share holder that he would spend money on players and we might win some trophies like Chelsea and City.

I don’t car who is in charge as long as it is for the good of the club and we start getting some decent players and start competing for things.

arsenalista

Why not support one of those clubs then? Arsenal at least has an ethos — it’s been undermined in recent years. But it exists. If Usmanov owned Arsenal it’s like getting worked up over which gas station is better, or target or tesco, or some other bullshit.

Donald\'s Trump

No it doesn’t. You think it does and we’re better than everyone else but not really. We have a billionaire cunt owner the only difference is he doesn’t give a shit. Personally I don’t think that’s the problem as we’ve shown we can invest in players over the last few years. The commercial deals are pretty good and he doesn’t take money out (£6milion is fuck all). The problems with Arsenal are mainly on the football side so I think a change of manager is more important than a change of owner The problem with the owner is I’m not… Read more »

CRamirez

Don’t know much about how Usmanov would run the club if he had majority hold but it has got to be better than Kroenke. It’s no secret what that smug asshole has done to his teams in the NBA, NHL and NFL. He in no way gives two shits about Arsenal.

Kroenke is also set to lose a bunch of money with his NFL stadium reportedly being delayed by a year so I can only imagine that will tighten his purse strings even more…

Kake

Sorry for the profanity, but get kroenke the fuck out of arsenal

Monkey Nuts

How did these pair of cunts come about their money? I presume one inherited like Donald small hands Trump and the other grabbed all he could from Boris Yeltsin like that jaw jut twat at Chavski.

Original Paul

Yes but Usmanov became even richer than Kroenke when he started doing window cleaning on the side…

Red beard

Usmanov means Dein. That’s more than enough for me. Means gazidis would fuck off to that MLS job

London

We will win titles if he becomes the owner.
He would not settle for mediocrity.
Not sure if morals need to come into this

PBM

For me morals should very much come into it. There are bigger issues in the world than winning the premiership , and how Usmanov gained his money and who suffered because of it should be very important to us. I love the club and its values , and personally I hope the board and Kroenke continue to not sell to him

arsenalista

Are you on Usmanov’s employ? You all are as bad as Chelski or City supporters.

papergooner

It’s actually interesting to know why fans support a football club. It could be related to where they are born, the manager, the style of play, the history of the club (how many titles a club has won or the personalities they have produced. Or even the values the club holds.For me it was mainly the style of Arsenal’s possession and attacking football but also Arsene Wenger and his philosophy of creating great personalities. If someone supports for club values, a change in ownership might erase values a club holds dear. Instead of sustainably competing at the top level we… Read more »

Arsepedant

I’m with you. Kroenke is a terrible owner, disinterested and uncaring, but Usmanov is a slimy criminal shitball and I would be disgusted to have him as majority owner.

PFo

Surely a happy medium exists?

Yankee Gooner

A disinterested shitball?

Adam

Frankly, I support Arsenal because they don’t buy the league like Chelsea and City does, changing manager ruthlessly. But realistically, money and success goes hand in hand in today’s football scene. I believe many fans like me are desperate to see Arsenal win the league again and finally the CL.

el-bahja

#wengerout #kronkeout

Gervinho

$1.3b offer for 67% would value the club at $1.9b. Forbes valued Arsenal at $2.02b in 2016…

Maybe a higher valuation would get him to bite? Because I’m sure an extra $400m would mean the world to someone like Kroenke, the greedy fuck!

LEFT08

Could AW not signing a new deal yet have anything to do with this? Just thinking out loud…

gunnertron

Dude, my thoughts exactly, Was it Dein who sold most of his shares to Usmanov? Dein and Wenger are pretty tight… This contract standoff and now this takeover bid, just coincidence? Could this be a dud bid to put the ball in KSE’s court with other parties more serious about taking over Arsenal? After all Usmanov knows of the animosity between himself and Stan so knew that a bid would be rejected, this perhaps may allow another party to launch a better offer and Usmanov get’s his money back and Stan is rid of the Arsenal headache? A lot of… Read more »

santori

This fool turns up whenever there is crisis to sow. Do some fans really think Usamov is a better option? As I have said many times before, Silent Stan may not be the fairy tale best option but at very least he stays out of meddling with the club. Usamov will use the club to his own gains. I have a lot of time for your guest Amy Lawrence but even she is prey to this whole bandwagon nonsense that there is a problem at the club. There are issues (no club is without it) but we are hardly the… Read more »

chris66

People are missing the point. Usmanov is in a terrible position. he owns 30% of the club but has zero control. He can stop big decisions but Stan never makes any of those does he? Nobody will buy Usmanov’s shares unless they are at a deep discount, because they would then be in the same position. Stan can either ignore him or wait him out and force him to pay a lot more money to get control of the club. Of course Usmanov knows all of this which is why he keeps playing these PR games every now and again… Read more »

Donald\'s Trump

What?

There are no problems at the club. Then in the next sentence you say there are problems at the club.

I guess it’s all El Neny’s fault.

antgoon

if it means Usmanov is going to splash the cash i’m all in even though it may not guarantee success.

santori

As far as any “announcements’ As to the manager’s future is made or not…this is hardly surprising. Cross the line first. The board would be foolish beyond belief top announce anything at this juncture. 1) If Wenger said he was staying, the anti Wenger fans will ratchet up the noise further affecting the already toxic atmosphere if not tepid support. 2) If Wenger said he was leaving, the vultures will truly circle and some players (other than our key duo) will have their eyes toward the summer with their agents in their ear…further debilitating whatever slim chance we may have… Read more »

santori

Bottomline is we need a better owner than BOTH these characters.

But at least Stan does not dwell into issues he may not understand.

Mathius

Kroenke out!!!!!!!!

Liam Bradys left peg

I would gladly donate the extra £1 if he wants to up his bid! Kroenke out.

arsenalista

Are you all so bored with your lives that you’re excited at the prospect of Jabba the hut owning our beloved club? No Kroenke fan either, but this is hardly the ay forward. Just start supporting Chelski; it’s basically the same thing.

George

Well said.

mashkeyboardgetusername

Know I’m going against the grain here, but I don’t want to see Usmanov as owner of Arsenal. Kroenke may be silent, but Usmanov seems like a seriously slimy character. Let’s not forget, the very first thing he said upon becoming a shareholder was he wanted to take money out of the club in the form of dividends, so I don’t know why people think he’s suddenly going to pump money in. He also literally bribed a bunch of journalists with caviar to get good publicity – bribery does not indicate a man of upstanding character. He’s very good at… Read more »

George

*applauds*

David Hillier\'s luggage

Usmanov, next season’s Joel Campbell/Lucas Perez

Ray from Norfolk, Virginia

Beside the Flamini-billionaire-in-waiting scenario, the only owner I would love to have is Robert Kraft. He is the quintessential classy winner, despite most of the other American Football owners forming a coalition against him. The rumored cheating scandal called “deflategate” ignores the Ideal Gas Law. Robert Kraft has hired people who have turned his American Football team into a true dynasty.

Donald\'s Trump

I once emailed the CEO where I work who was called Virginia and accidentally typed Virgina and then laughed to myself for hours.

George

F**k off, Baron Greenback. Parasitic c**t.

Wrighty’s comments were disgusting too. And I can’t believe Adams, a player whom I (once) loved.

Goonie

There is a poisonous, destructive, win-at-all-costs air of desperation around the club at the moment.

Donald\'s Trump

Oh no, how dare people want to win.

Dan Hunter

Can anyone show me one billionaire who has NOT done a dodgy thing or two to get where they are?

Donald\'s Trump

Pablo Escobar

Assistantref

“He and Kroenke are not on speaking terms, and it’s understood the American would never sanction a sale to Usmanov, even if it meant a large profit.”

I am pretty sure Stan Kroenke doesn’t give a fuck about Arsenal and if he is going to sell he’d sell it to whoever bid 1 pound more than the next guy.

meh as fook

I was deeply against the idea of Usmanov having anything to do with our club but it does seem that Kroenke isn’t the saviour we were looking for either. I guess I’m open to a change now.

It would be an interesting change and I wonder if Usmanov were in charge if he’d have as much patience. Maybe he’d say to Arsene: “потратить чертову деньги”

Abc

So is Kroenke with anyone on “speaking terms”? Didn’t know that…

Your Daily Arsenal

Well this is a hard choice between the two, I bet David Dein still regrets pushing the shareholders towards Kronke instead

Dholio

Can the Wenger Out Brigade now focus all their energy and plane fly overs on making life difficult for the kroenkes? Anyone but Kroenke

Bill

Can’t believe that so many people want this man in charge of ‘their’ club. https://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2007/09/alisher_usmanov/.

Mathius

Kroenke has said he’s not selling because it’s not about the money, it’s about Arsenal winning things. Well, he hasn’t invested a penny in players and his spell in charge has been an unmitigated disaster. He’s clearly a liar who is in it just for the money as he doesn’t even like the sport.

Indygooner

I’m willing to start a move to rent a plane with a Banner “Kronke out; You’re the reason” for the FA final

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