Stan Kroenke has moved closer to launching a formal takeover of Arsenal by acquiring another 200 shares in the club’s parent holding company.

The Denver-based sports magnate now controls 29.9 per cent of the company, just short of the 29.99 per cent threshold beyond which he would be forced to make an offer for the remaining shares.

One hundred of the shares purchased by Kroenke were bought from Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood.

When the matter of Kroenke’s intentions for the Premier League club were raised during the recent annual general meeting at Emirates Stadium, the American — nicknamed ‘Silent Stan’ — chose not to take the opportunity to address the gathered shareholders, with Hill-Wood intervening.

Any public statements against future bid intentions must be unambiguous, otherwise the individual or group would, under the Takeover Panel’s rule 2.8, be prevented from making a formal move for six months.

While Hill-Wood insisted major changes behind the scenes were not on the agenda, the Arsenal chairman has also suggested he was “very relaxed” about a proposed takeover by the American.