Charlton Athletic have revealed that the purchase of the club by East Street Investments (ESI) has officially been completed.

In a statement on the club website, former owner Roland Duchatelet said that the Charlton fans should put their faith in the new ownership.

"This is a hugely exciting time for everybody involved with Charlton Athletic and I believe the club is in safe hands with His Excellency Tahnoon Nimer, Matt Southall and Jonathan Heller."

"It allows the new owners to commit resources to the football side in order to bring in new players who will help secure the club's position in the Championship," Duchatelet added.

Duchatelet agreed the sale of the the club to the Abu Dhabi based consortium in principle at the end of November.

Since then, ESI have undergone the process of due diligence by the EFL, which has included the routine 'Fit and Proper' owners and directors test.

Chairman Matt Southall said: "This is a great opportunity for ESI and we are thankful to Roland Duchatelet and his team for giving us the chance to build on such strong foundations."

“Now, for us, the hard work begins. We already have plans in place to support Lee and his staff over the next month."

Much of Roland Duchatelet's five year tenure at the club has been fractious, as it has seen a number of protests towards the ownership by Charlton supporters. The Belgian put the club up for sale at the end of 2017.

Charlton currently sit in 19th place in the Championship.

QUIZ: How much can you remember from Charlton's 2016/17 season?

The Verdict

This news brings an end to the saga of whether the takeover would be completed or not, and now Charlton can start to plan for the future under new ownership - starting with the January transfer window.

Addicks fans will be pleased to see the back of Roland Duchatelet, who has been one of the more divisive figures in the club's recent history.

Although it is a new era, ESI have to show that they are serious in their plans to move the club forward, and that begins by building a strong rapport with the Charlton fans.