Spotify co-founder ready to pay one Ek of a price to take over Arsenal 

NOT long after the sudden birth and even more sudden demise of the European Super League (ESL), a number of the clubs in the ill-fated cartel, notably the American-owned Premier League clubs, became the centre of speculation over their future ownership.

Quickly, it became known that the Glazer family, who had previously said they wouldn't take a penny less than £4bn for Manchester United from any prospective owner, are now willing to soften their stance to any new bidders in the wake of the fallout from the ESL tripping up over its laces.

This was followed by the revelation that Liverpool owners, Fenway Sports Group (FSG), had rejected a bid of £3bn for the club from a Middle East investor prior to the ESL debacle. Raising speculation that in light of the hate and vitriol the owners have since endured from the fans, that FSG might reconsider their position with regards selling the Merseyside giant.

But the clearest indication of a genuine ownership bid came from Arsenal when music tech guru Daniel Ek claimed he intended to make a bid for the north London behemoth.

So serious is this bid from the Spotify co-founder, that Ek had apparently enlisted the services of club legends Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp and Patrick Viera to help him prepare the package he hopes will prove acceptable to Arsenal's American owners, the Kroenke family.

The Kroenkes were quick to reject the bid and announced their commitment to the club but that may be tested in the coming weeks as the fallout from the ESL mess continues to see Gunner fans take aim at their American owners. Not to mind the potential retribution from Uefa and Premier League still to come for all six English ESL clubs.

Maybe the time will soon come right for the Kroenkes to hit skip on their ownership aspirations and say, "to Ek with it, let's sell it to the Spotify lad".

Should the Arsenal venture not work out for the Swedish entrepreneur, Ek might consider buying Leeds United. Where better to own a Premier League club, when you have a name like his than in the very heart of Yorkshire where he could rename the club, 'Leeds United: By Ek'.

Whichever way it ends up, it gets you thinking, should the Ek bid be successful, what characteristics from his Spotify world would he bring to his tenure at Arsenal?

Will matches become streaming events? Will stadiums become known as platforms? Of course, if we go down that route then substitutions will henceforth have to be known as shuffles, defeats will be skips, draws will be loops, and victories will have to be referred to as successful s.

The good news will be that you will be able to watch the matches, sorry streaming events, without paying a subscription fee but you will have to put up with a soothing voice interrupting the commentary every 10 minutes reminding you that you wouldn't have to listen to the interruption from the soothing voice every 10 minutes if you'd just pay for the subscription.

The big fear for the Arsenal players though will be pay. Should the new owners pay the players the same way Spotify pay music performers then we could see amounts like 30c for a corner, 50c for a , a euro for a header, a euro fifty for an interception, €2 for a successful tackle and €3 for an assist. €5 for a goal? Can't see the players standing for that.

And will the club just delete a player/performer if they receive enough criticism about them from the fans? Actually, a lot of fans might like that situation.

Club Social

And what of the other five English of the ESL? What social media platform owner would suit their profile?

Well, Man United would have to be Facebook, wouldn't they? The biggest with the most followers. Wielding a lot of influence, but not taken as seriously as it once was in its heyday.

Liverpool are Twitter, growing strong once their American owner found a way to make their huge fanbase pay. They look good but just can't help putting their foot in it just when everything is going well.

Chelsea are WhatsApp.They let on they are the platform of the people but Russian influence has eroded their believability and it's all become a bit sinister now.

Man City? Well, they are bound to be Facebook's pretty cousin Instagram. Lots of money on show and extremely elegant, even beautiful. They look like a club with plenty influence, but deep down everyone knows they are just splashing the cash in a gaudy grab to be taken seriously. There is an emptiness behind what they sacrificed to gain respect in the game.

As for Spurs? Well, they are MySpace...