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Football London
Football London
Sport
Tashan Deniran-Alleyne

Stan Kroenke's stance on Arsenal sale has been revealed as FSG issue Liverpool statement

The big news on Monday November 7 aside from the Champions League and Europa League draws and the small matter of World Cup squad announcements affecting Arsenal players, is that of Fenway Sports Group being open to the full sale of Liverpool.

Since October 2010, the Reds have been under the stewardship of the American owners - led by John W Henry and Thomas C Werner - who purchased the club from Tom Hicks and George Gillett for £300m. However, it has been revealed that they are now actively searching for interested parties in a bid to attract major new investment to the club.

"There have been a number of recent changes of ownership and rumours of changes in ownership at EPL clubs and inevitably we are asked regularly about Fenway Sports Group’s ownership in Liverpool," a statement reads, as per the Liverpool Echo. "FSG has frequently received expressions of interest from third parties seeking to become shareholders in Liverpool.

READ MORE: Fenway Sports Group make key Liverpool decision that could impact Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham

"FSG has said before that under the right terms and conditions we would consider new shareholders if it was in the best interests of Liverpool as a club. FSG remains fully committed to the success of Liverpool, both on and off the pitch."

If FSG get their wish, Liverpool would become the latest Premier League club to be sold. In fact, in the last 12 months alone, Newcastle United and Chelsea have changed ownership with Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital coughing up over £4bn to secure the purchase of the Blues.

According to the most recent valuation figures released by Forbes, Liverpool are estimated to be worth $4.45bn (£3.6bn) which puts them fourth in a list of the most valuable clubs in the world yearly - above Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal who just miss out on a top 10 spot.

The Gunners are estimated to be worth $2.05bn (£1.7bn), but is Stan Kroenke - who became the club's sole owner back in September 2018 - in a position where he too is open to the full sale of Arsenal Football Club in the near future? Well, his son Josh, has already emphatically made the stance crystal clear.

Speaking to Sky Sports in late 2021, he said: "We get bids for the club all the time, from many different parties around the world and that speaks to the strength of the Arsenal. It’s a wonderful institution, Arsenal Football Club is a global brand and my only response to anything is the club is not for sale, we’re just getting started.

"We've only really owned the club since 2018. We have a young manager, we have a young squad and we’re charting our path to the future. In the United States we have a certain model [used at other organisations run by Kroenke Sports & Entertainment] and we’re implementing that here, and we have over the last three years, which is, young players, talented players with the right mentality, let them grow together while continuing to sprinkle in talent throughout the squad.

"Eventually it grows into something very special. The power of continuity behind the scenes and people working together and pulling in the same direction is an underrated aspect of pro sports. With the power of continuity and allowing this group to grow together, special times are ahead for this club."

One of the bids Kroenke is most likely referring to is from Daniel Ek - the Swedish billionaire entrepreneur who is the co-founder of music streaming platform Spotify - who revealed his interest in purchasing the club from Kroenke and even had at least one offer rejected.

As reported by football.london, Ek's proposed takeover was genuine and Gunners legend Thierry Henry confirmed his involvement thus during an appearance on Sky Sports' Monday Night Football programme following victory in the North London Derby against Spurs last season.

Meanwhile, Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote has publically stated on several occasions his wish to become Arsenal owner: "It is a team that yes I would like to buy someday, but what I keep saying is we have $20billion worth of projects and that's what I really want to concentrate on," he said as recently as January 2020. "I'm trying to finish building the company and then after we finish, maybe sometime in 2021 we can.

But ultimately with KSE [Kroenke Sports & Entertainment] standing firm on their refusal to sell, unless this stance has changed then Arsenal won't be following in Liverpool's footsteps anytime soon which means Ek, Dangote and any other billionaire with hopes of purchasing the club could be waiting for a very long time.

READ NEXT:

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