Statement on the plusmarkets website.

For those of you who prefer to read it here, goes as follows:

Arsenal Holdings plc (the "Company") confirms that, as announced by the Company on 30 March 2009, it has been notified that on that date Stan Kroenke, a director of the Company, had a beneficial holding of 12,756 ordinary shares of £1 each in the capital of the Company ("Shares") (representing 20.5 per cent. of the total issued share capital of the Company). The Company's announcement on 30 March 2009 did not contain the details of 42 Shares which had recently been acquired by Mr Kroenke. Those Shares were acquired by Mr Kroenke in five separate transactions between 6 March 2009 and 23 March 2009 (with settlement dates between 6 March 2009 and 6 April 2009) at prices of between £7,600 per Share and £7,800 per Share.

In addition, the Company announces that it has today been notified that on 1 April 2009 Mr Kroenke acquired a further 18 Shares at a price of £7,800 per Share. Following that transaction, Mr Kroenke has a beneficial holding of 12,774 Shares (representing 20.5 per cent. of the total issued share capital of the Company).

What does it mean? Well apart from a bit of a black mark in delaying the notification to the market that a director has increased his shareholding, it indicates Kroenke thinks Arsenal are a good investment, an outlook that may well be influenced by the appointment of Ivan Gazidis to run the club on a day to day basis. Kroenke denies having anything to do with that appointment, although it is strange to think he did not at least offer a glowing reference.

So the price is evidently right for Arsenal’s major shareholder on the board to purchase more of the club. A year ago it was Alisher Usmanov buying every loose share going. Watch this space…