Arsenal investors slam Kroenke over Van Persie contract

Jul 5, 2012 12:19:00 PM

The club's second-biggest shareholders, Alisher Usmanov and Farhad Moshiri, have questioned the way the club is operating after the captain announced his intention to depart

Arsenal's second-biggest shareholders, Alisher Usmanov and Farhad Moshiri, have written an open letter to the club's board criticising American owner Stan Kroenke's running of the club.

In a letter obtained by Associated Press, Usmanov and Moshiri, who own 29.72 per cent of the club, express "deep reservations" regarding Arsenal's direction under Kroenke, who currently owns 66.83% of shares.

The correspondence comes after captain Robin van Persie revealed his intention to leave the Gunners upon the expiry of his contract following "disagree[ment] on the way Arsenal FC should move forward".

The two shareholders insist that "tight" financial restrictions have forced manager Arsene Wenger into "selling his best players and having to continue to find cheaper replacements".

Arsenal found themselves in a similar situation with star players Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri last summer, and the letter asks "where are the safeguards to ensure that this doesn't happen again and again?"

Usmanov and Moshiri blame a lack of ambition for the continued departure of key players, adding that "we are faced with losing our true marquee player" because of the failure to "give confidence that we can win trophies".

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