Alisher Usmanov delivered a parting shot to Stan Kroenke after finally conceding defeat in the 11-year battle for Arsenal, claiming that a club now heading for sole private ownership for the first time in their modern history “could be the best in the world”.

Kroenke has described his planned £602 million outlay on buying the remaining Arsenal shares as a “new chapter” for the Emirates team, but concerns were raised on Tuesday night by prominent former shareholder and honorary vice-president Lady Bracewell-Smith. She previously sold her own shares to Kroenke but called it a “truly sad day for Arsenal Football Club”. The Arsenal Supporters’ Trust also insisted that it was a “dreadful day” for the club.

Many fans are upset at how Kroenke, who will pay £550 million for Usmanov’s 30 per cent stake, then intends to exercise a legal option to complete the compulsory acquisition of the remaining shares. That will mean individual supporters being obliged to sell their stake and the club no longer being a public limited company.

The deal values Arsenal at £1.8 billion, compared with £731 million when Kroenke last made a takeover offer in 2011.

In the offer statement, Kroenke confirmed that he would then re-register Arsenal as a private company and argued that it would allow the club to move more quickly in pursuing its strategy. He pointed to how 18 out of the 20 Premier League clubs were now privately owned.