Arsenal will have to put all the speculation surrounding the club behind them as they prepare to face former manager Unai Emery’s Villareal in the Europa League semi-finals.

The Gunners will make the trip to Estadio de la Cerámica this evening (Thursday, 8pm) in the first leg as they bid for success in the competition in order to secure them a spot in Europe next season.

It is then a trip away to St James Park on Sunday to take on Newcastle United in the Premier League as continue trying to climb out of the mid-table pack of teams.

Away from the action, owners, the Kroenke family, insist they "are not selling any stake" in the Premier League club, amid talk of a takeover from Swedish billionaire Daniel Ek.

Ek, co-founder and chief executive of music streaming service Spotify, has enlisted three of Arsenal's legendary 'Invincibles' - Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp and Patrick Vieira - to help him try and purchase the club.

Hackney Gazette: File photo dated 27-05-2017 of Arsenal Owner Stan Kroenke. Issue date: Tuesday April 27, 2021.File photo dated 27-05-2017 of Arsenal Owner Stan Kroenke. Issue date: Tuesday April 27, 2021. (Image: PA Wire/PA Images)

But Stan Kroenke and Josh Kroenke say they remain "100 per cent committed" to Arsenal.

"In recent days we have noted media speculation regarding a potential takeover bid for Arsenal Football Club," read a statement released by Kroenke Sports & Entertainment (KSE).

"We remain 100 per cent committed to Arsenal and are not selling any stake in the club. We have not received any offer and we will not entertain any offer.

"Our ambition for Arsenal remains to compete to win the biggest trophies in the game and our focus remains on improving our competitiveness on the pitch to achieve this."

The Kroenkes' statement follows days of speculation surrounding the future ownership of the club after Ek, a life-long Arsenal fan, threw his hat into the ring when thousands of Arsenal fans protested against the owners following the collapse of the proposed European Super League.

Ek had also intimated he would be open to having fan representation in the board room.

He is understood to be totally serious about the deal and has the funds to make it happen. According to Forbes, he is worth £3.38billion (€4.7billion), and was named the most influential person in the music business by American magazine Billboard in 2017.