Graphic: who owns what at Arsenal

If Arsenal were not willing to entertain the prospect of a takeover, they would not have dismissed Lady Nina Bracewell-Smith as a director. That is the central idea of a credible theory doing the rounds about the boardroom turmoil at the Emirates Stadium, but what is more certain is that there have been severe disagreements at a club that pride themselves on doing things the right way.

The board decided to dismiss Bracewell-Smith as a director because it felt that she was not capable of doing the job. She had also been against the appointment of Ivan Gazidis as chief executive.

The decision to dismiss her needed the signatures of fellow directors, but Richard Carr, who is related to Bracewell-Smith by marriage, felt it was morally wrong to put his name to the document and was also forced to leave. Their departure means that the 20 per cent stake they hold in the club is potentially available to buy, leaving the future ownership of the club shrouded in doubt.

Last night Bracewell-Smith made a hard-hitting attack on her former colleagues. “I’m in total shock and very upset about the appalling way I have been treated,” she said. “I can’t understand why I have been removed in such a ruthless fashion. It is very difficult to accept, especially after what my family has done for Arsenal for so many years.”

Bracewell-Smith could team up with David Dein, who she effectively helped to dismiss as vice-chairman in April 2007, when she told the board that he had asked her to sell her shares to Stan Kroenke.

The conspiracy theory is that Bracewell-Smith has been forced out to ascertain whether there is a potential investor willing to buy the club.Her shares are available to buy as she is not part of the lockdown agreement, which prevents directors from selling their shares.

If that investor is Alisher Usmanov, the club’s largest shareholder with a 24.9 per cent holding, he would be able to take his stake to in excess of 45 per cent and possibly take control of the club. If it is a third party, they may equally be able to buy the same stake.

Either way, the strategy allows Danny Fiszman to realise his 24.11 per cent stake, worth £120 million, by leaving the club without losing face by selling to a foreign investor, because he would have little choice. It sounds fanciful, but at least one leading shareholder believes that this is the game plan.