DO YOU THINK DEIN STILL HAS ARSENAL'S BEST INTEREST AT HEART

[I Hate Hleb]

IT SEEMS BY THE QUANTITY OF ANTI DAVID DEIN MATERIAL ON THE THREADS IN THE FURTHER DISCUSSION SECTION, THAT OUR FORMER VICE-CHIARMAN HAS LOST A LOT OF SUPPORT BY HIS RECENT ACTIONS.

I DON'T WANT TO GO INTO THE WHOLE TAKE-OVER BUSINESS AGAIN ON THIS THREAD, BUT IN LIGHT OF THE THE VERY INTERESTING EVENTS OF THE PAST WEEK, I WANTED TO POSE THE ABOVE QUESTION TO GARNER THE GENERAL FEELING OF THE FORUM.

SO, DO YOU THINK DEIN HAS ARSENAL'S BEST INTERESTS AT HEART OR ONLY HIS OWN?

[tomkingsbury]

i dont like what dein's up to - im dead agaisnt a takeover anyway. Not sure if there's thread up about it , but wenger on arsenal's website has said he prefers to make stars than buy them, so would dein's potential involvement make a differance anyway??

[REB]

im not that pushed about which millionare owns the shares that controls the club,, at the end of the day they are all the same,, the club belongs to the fans and i would rather hav a fan in charge then someone who doesnt understand us,, and yes i still thing david dein has arsenal at heart..

[Magic Hat]

I think Dein means well but his belief in himself as the saviour as overtaken his brain.

[T.S]

It's hard to say for sure, but it's fair to say that some of DD's plans have been a bit suspect (European Superleague, Wembley, etc.). I don't think he wants to do any harm to us and I don't doubt for one second that he is an Arsenal fan. However, I think he is looking after his own means and he sees this as a good way of doing it.

Think of it this way; why did he sell his shares to who he has? It's so he can have a cool £75M burning a hole in his back pocket while still getting to play with his favourite toys (by being chairman of Red and White). I believe that this may well be the reason he didn't sell up to Kroenke. My guess is that Silent Stan would want to be the top man at the Club and this wouldn't sit well with DD.

To conclude, I think DD does have Arsenal's best interests at heart, but I think he has his own too and I think his own interests are his priority. Although, he's hoping he can sort out the Arse in the process.

Have I confused you yet? I know I've confused myself!

[I Hate Hleb]

SO IS THAT A YES OR A NO TONY?

[T.S]

It's a yes

[gunners-need-steel]

Yes, I still think Dein has the best interests of arsenal at heart .. not as certain as I used to be, mind you ..

I believe this usmanov deal was a miscalculation, and I eagerly await DD's next move .. hope he does the right thing to restore the faith of all those fans that have believed him all this while ...

[26may1989]

My answer to the poll question, "Do you still trust DD?", is definitely "No". How can you trust someone who does a deal with a man like Usmanov, who makes Abramovich look like a decent guy, and holds him up as a saviour?

But that isn't the same as the answer to I Hate Hleb's question, "Do you think DD has Arsenal's interests at heart or only his own?" To that, I would, like others say, DD's misguided but like us, probably goes to sleep thinking about what would make the Arse a better football club.

[augie]

I most certainly do still trust DD implicitly. The new partner he chose may not be ideal but my support is and always has been for DD not his associates and I still believe he wants what is best for the club in the long run. Isn't it amazing though how many fans were against the kroenke takeover but are now coming out with lines like "at least kroenke is a sports fanatic" - why didnt these fans take that attitude in the summer to begin with ? If, as is reported, DD has teamed up with usmanov cos kroenke wanted to be top man then I have no problem with DD's decision cos while I may be leaning in favour of a takeover or cash injection I do still want the power in the club to be held by "a proper Arsenal man" a la DD. I think if you ask wenger in the morning if his trust in DD has wavered at all in light of recent events you will receive an emphatic no and he would probaly look forward to the return of his long time friend. Viva la revolution

[Galasso]

I most certainly do still trust DD implicitly. The new partner he chose may not be ideal but my support is and always has been for DD not his associates and I still believe he wants what is best for the club in the long run. Isn't it amazing though how many fans were against the kroenke takeover but are now coming out with lines like "at least kroenke is a sports fanatic" - why didnt these fans take that attitude in the summer to begin with ? If, as is reported, DD has teamed up with usmanov cos kroenke wanted to be top man then I have no problem with DD's decision cos while I may be leaning in favour of a takeover or cash injection I do still want the power in the club to be held by "a proper Arsenal man" a la DD. I think if you ask wenger in the morning if his trust in DD has wavered at all in light of recent events you will receive an emphatic no and he would probaly look forward to the return of his long time friend. Viva la revolution

Augie

Everything isn't black and white - you seem intent on making everything into those "for" and against", "optimists" and pessimists". I would consider myself neither black, nor white - grey.

I appreciate Dein's assets while taking a dim view on some aspects of the man. Would I want him back, solely on the basis of his administrative skills- Yes, he knows how to deal within football and Arsene seems to work well with him.

Do I know who would be best to run Arsenal with 10 years hindsight - - the board or a sole investor? - Yes - Do I know now? - No, I know as much about the exact inner workings of Arsenal, its shareholders and the responsibility for finances as, I suspect, you do.

Those people who are in favour of the board shouldn't been seem as some sort of species of half-wits - they are making rational judgments based upon current evidence. If the board are fattening things up to make a quick buck, then fuck 'em. But fuck DD for selling out his shares to Usmanov - if it had been 30 years ago maybe Idi Amin would've been interested.

You can account for the majority of profit anyone connected with Arsenal makes is down not to David Dein, but Arsene Wenger. David Dein says we need investment in the team; Arsene Wenger says we can create a team without it. On the same page?? I know who I trust.

Arsenal are dispensing with tradition and values left, right and centre. If this Usmanov guy takes over then what does that make us?

And "I still want power to be held by a proper Arsenal man, a la DD". What power? He won't have any - he doesn't hold any shares and will be liable for dimissal at any time- after all, his employment at the club does not affect whether Arsene Wenger stays, does it? And he will be a puppet like every Chelsea employee.

[donaldo]

I have back DD from the start.What we want is to be able to compete on a level playing field with Chelski and Man Utd.I dont think we can do that with the present board.We need more investment.I want Arsenal to become the biggest club in Europe that goes to Barcelona and Madrid and takes there best players from them not the other way round.

[Eboue Can't Defend]

I am a fan of David Dein for what he has done in the past but I'm not really sure whether his recent actions will prove helpful or damaging to Arsenal Football Club in the long run.

At the moment I'm still on the 'trust him' side of the argument, but that might change if forth-coming events regarding the ownership issue subsequently have a detrimental effect on and off the pitch.

[stats]

Dein is not a money making man but was a fan of Arsenal & i think he will still follow on results but not heading over the Emirates due to the media being on his back
I'm surprised they wasn't at the England Brazil game as he walked up next to me & i was about to say good luck for the future but he relished the PS part of Wembley was another gate lol
He's done well for his money & has succues behind him being the vice chairman, the former vice chairman at the FA & the head of the G14 group
Dein sold a couple of percent of his shares to Fiszman who i think should bugger off along with Kieth Edleman
I say good luck to Dein as he's done his bit for AFC & bought in Wenger & so on
I can now guess Darren (his son) will earn more & more money out of Thierry so that he'll have even more to spend

[WestlowerRob]

Augie says Deins new partner "may not be ideal"!! Come on, pleease. On the evidence we have read so far there are some very real concerns here. I would not want Arsenals standing in this country and place in history blackened by association with such a person. Some things are more important in life than having £500 million to buy a title or two. And Arsenes comments have hardly welcomed the prospect of russian investment.

If the russian has entire control of "red and white" then Dein has no real power. He sold his opportunity to independently influence change at Arsenal to the russian for lots of money.

It is no coincidence that under the current make up of the Board Arsenal have been established, over a number of decades, as one of the top 3 clubs in the country (next to Man U and Liverpool). They have engineered the successful transition to a new stadium that sells out 60000 every week. They have not taken a dividend for over 30 years or "sold" their shares to external influences when they could have made millions overnight. They have remained loyal to Arsenal throughout all of this. I think they have the best interests of the club at heart and have shown that.

They have always said funds are available to Arsene but it is clear Arsene wants to create, rather than buy and assemble, a great team.

So unless you want Arsene to go, what benefit is there in supporting any takeover, whether that includes Dein or not?

The football financial bubble will burst one day and then these big investors will fleece what they can from the clubs (who may also be left with an acquisition debt) and disappear onto their next venture.