Arsenal: Stan Kroenke buyout can only go one way

Arsenal majority shareholder Stan Kroenke, who nobody likes, has now not only refused to sell, but he’s on the offensive. Which can only mean one thing.

No matter what side of the Arsenal spectrum you fall on in regards to Arsene Wenger, there is one unified front that I do believe every single self-respecting supporter falls on. And that is the side directly opposing the American business tycoon Stan Kroenke.

The loathed majority-share holder has said some really terrible thing in the past, including (but not limited to) saying that he didn’t buy the Gunners to win trophies.

The cry has long been that he is only in the position that he is in for the sake of making money. And when you look at his other business dealings in the sports world, it’s hard to see any other possibility. It’s either trophies or money.

The problem is that there is no way to get rid of him. He owns 67% of the club, meaning that unless he willingly sells, which he has no reason to (as he himself has said) then he will remain, the despised head on an otherwise celebrated body.

In recent times, Alishair Usmanov, who owns 30% of the shares, has tried to buy out Kroenke, but that is when we found out that Kroenke isn’t selling, and that’s final.

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Now, the tide looks to be turning, just in the other direction. Because according to reports from the Guardian, Kroenke has made an approach to buyout Usmanov’s shares for £525m, which would take the American’s shares to 97%. Also know as a fricking nightmare.

The most unfortunate thing about this who situation is that it can only really go one way, and that is in the favor of Kroenke. No matter what happens, nothing changes. Kroenke remains the majority share holder, it will just depend what the number attached to his name reads.

Usmanov remained the last great hope of Gooners around the world to see their club saved from the clutches of a money-hungry businessman who doesn’t give a lick about the club he owns. To see him removed from the picture would lead to a resulting future that is bleak and damn near hopeless.

The only other name out there is Aliko Dangote, the richest man in Africa, but his brash philosophy looks to steer the Gunners away from tradition and make them more focused on doing the Manchester approach of buying and selling players like a bazaar rather than investing in loyalty. Also known as “the Arsenal way.” But is anything really worse than Kroenke?

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There just isn’t much good news to be found here, I’m afraid to say. All we can do is hope that Usmanov holds on, even if that isn’t worth too terribly much.

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