Arsenal shareholder denies he is planning to sell stake to Stan Kroenke

Russian Billionaire Alisher Usmanov has denied he is in planning to cash in on his 30 per cent stake in Premier League giant Arsenal to majority shareholder American Stan Kroenke.

According to media reports, Stan Kroenke’s company Kroenke Sports Enterprise [KSE] UK was set to offer £525million to purchase the 18,695 shareholdings held by Alisher Usmanov’s Red and White Securities Limited.

Despite being the second biggest individual shareholder in the English Premier League club, Alisher Usmanov has not been handed a seat on the board, leading to claims the Russian businessmen may be seriously considering his long-term options.

However, in an official statement released on Wednesday afternoon, Alisher Usmanov moved to debunk the rumour and allay fears he was set to sell his Arsenal shareholdings to the American Billionaire.

Usmanov said there has been rumour relating to a possible bid for my 30 per cent Arsenal stake in recent days. He admitted he can relate with the anxiety of the fans that these speculations are causing to the supporters as reflected by the [AST] Arsenal Supporters’ Trust.”

He said, “In light of this, I [Usmanov] would like to [state clearly] that I [Usmanov] am not holding any talks [negotiations] with Mr Kroenke about a sale [of shareholding].”