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Farhad Moshiri, expressed mixed feelings about his departure from Everton, wondering what might have been had manager Carlo Ancelotti remained at the club. Moshiri sold his stake in the Toffees to the Friedkin Group on Thursday in a deal reportedly exceeding £400 million.
The takeover has prompted Everton fan groups to look forward with "hope and optimism" after a particularly chaotic period under Moshiri.
The club were beset by a difficult relationship with fans, managerial upheaval, relegation battles, boardroom collapse, Premier League points deductions, and a financial crisis that pushed Everton to the brink.
In an open letter to supporters Moshiri acknowledged a sense of "sorrow when reflecting on the past" after a "challenging" time on Merseyside but said he leaves the club "in a materially better place" than the one he inherited.
"We brought top-class managers like Carlo Ancelotti to the club and who knows where we might have been had he not been lured back to his first love Real Madrid."
Moshiri said in the letter, external that leaving Everton with an "iconic stadium" for "all Evertonians, and the wider community, to enjoy for decades and decades to come" was something he would "feel real pride in".
"When I purchased the club eight years ago, I knew it needed to be modernised, both with a new stadium and also at the training ground, which has seen much investment," he added.
"I have met the huge costs of those improvements through my ownership, with season ticket prices remaining pretty well the same across my ownership period.
"I have tried to minimise the impact on fans with our tickets being among the most affordable in the Premier League."
A statement from the Everton Fan Advisory Board (Fab) said that apart from the development of the club's new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock, the time under Moshiri was a trying one.
"Our recent history has been clouded by relegation battles, financial uncertainty, failed ownership bids, a leadership vacuum and unjust sporting sanctions," Fab said.
"Today's announcement provides the opportunity for Evertonians to once again look forward with hope and optimism."
Fab said it was "encouraged by the aims and ambitions" set out by the Friedkin Group following their takeover.
