David Dein - Football Focus

[Bendtners Drinking Buddy]

Dein was forcibly removed from the Board by the other Board members in April 2007. The phrase they used at the time was "irreconcilable differences" between him and the rest of the board. He didn't sell his shares to Alisher Usmanov until August 2007.

The exact reasons (or "irreconcilable differences" as they put it) have never been revealed although they are thought to be any combination of the following

* Dein wanted us to move to Wembley but the rest of the Board wanted us to own our ground.

* Dein wanted to bring Kroenke and/or Usmanov on board but the others would not support this.

* Dein and Keith Edelman hated each other and couldn't work together - Edelman won that battle but lost the next battle when he was sacked.

Dein doesn't strike me as the sort of man to come out and say "You know what? I f**ked up and my mate Arsene is following the wrong path now" so any interviews he gives now are following the same tired old pattern.

If that is true JFG - then im with the board 100% on that.

[flash gunner]

Dein was forcibly removed from the Board by the other Board members in April 2007. The phrase they used at the time was "irreconcilable differences" between him and the rest of the board. He didn't sell his shares to Alisher Usmanov until August 2007.

The exact reasons (or "irreconcilable differences" as they put it) have never been revealed although they are thought to be any combination of the following

* Dein wanted us to move to Wembley but the rest of the Board wanted us to own our ground.

* Dein wanted to bring Kroenke and/or Usmanov on board but the others would not support this.

* Dein and Keith Edelman hated each other and couldn't work together - Edelman won that battle but lost the next battle when he was sacked.

Dein doesn't strike me as the sort of man to come out and say "You know what? I f**ked up and my mate Arsene is following the wrong path now" so any interviews he gives now are following the same tired old pattern.

If that is true JFG - then im with the board 100% on that.

BATPHONE

Its ringing

[butcher boy]

One rich kit backing another, how can anyone belive any off these balls is beyond me

[Number 5]

My point is - Players dictate what they want to do - Dein would not have made any difference in the Nasri / Cesc sagas of late. Edu ran down his contract, just as Nasri is doing, under his watch - so this isnt a "new" phenonmenon.

Dein was not "kicked off" the board - how can he be? He had a major and influential shareholding and a major role in the football club - supported by the manager! He CHOSE to sell his shares when he didnt have too, he could still be having a say now had he wished - he took the money and ran....some "Arsenal through and through man" he is - just like his son is now an agent for all the players that appear to be leaving.

Dein did a great job for us, but he is no hero that could come back and save the day now

You sure that's right?

I'm sure he was kicked off the board. I remember reading a story that his 02 mobile was switched off within an hour of him leaving the ground and he didn't sell his shares for a while. Usmanov never had any position on the board and he's had Dein's shares plus loads of others for a while now.

He has/had no major say in how things are run.

He still didnt have to sell did he? If he cared that much, why sell? He is a shrewd business man i dont accept that he was just simply "kicked off", he is too clever for that.

Playing Devils Avocado, IF we was kicked off - would it not have been for a good reason perhaps? We lay the blame with others but who is to say they were not right? Maybe he was getting above his station and damaging the club?.

This is all an aside, my point is, what is happening now is not a new phenomenon that didnt happen in the "good old days" of Dein - players rule the roost now and Dein could never change that, not then, not now.

I dont know, if you walk into a board meeting and every other board member wants you out, what are you gonna do?

Wasn't it Fizman who flushed him out, putting some shares on the market which Kroenke then picked up, they traced back to Dein and insisted he leave the board? I don't know something like that.

I think no matter what, he wanted a billionaire to take over, first Kroenke and then onto Usmanov.

But as you say, an aside to the main point which I think you have a fair arguement with. Let me ask you a question though,

Would you prefer Dein negotiating our transfers of incoming targets or Gazidis?

Who knows? on past performances i agree, Dein was succesful - but after Dein we have brought in the likes of Nasri, Arshavin, Ramsey....

But what if the problem is Wenger not Ivan? We just dont know - i dont thnk for one minute Wenger would put up with Ivan not getting deals done, he would walk....i wonder if :

a) Financial constrainst are bigger than we think

b) We (Wenger) are not actually bidding for the players we are made to believe we are

Thing about the Nasri and Arshavin transfers was they took forever to get done. I can't really remember Ramsey.

I just have this feeling that with Dein it would have been done. Arsene give me a name, ok, I'll go and get him. What's that, you don't think I should pay more that x ammount? You let me worry about that but if you think he's a player we need I'll make it happen.

That kind of shit.

Now, it just seems a cluster fuck to get it done as cheaply as possible.

But then again, I might be so pissed off right now it just seems better when I look back.

[rigsby]

If that is true JFG - then im with the board 100% on that.

Bar the Wembley thing why? Football has gone the route where to compete Arsenal need a huge injection of cash to compete. Dein saw this and looked to bring a billionair to back transfers. Keith Edelman is a bellend.

[Bergkamp-Genius]

I think the timing of these comments is interesting...Liverpool(h)...Udinese(a)...United (a)....
I think he is building AW up in anticipation of the shit storm about to come down on him if those games don't go well...

Wenger has had since mid May to strengthen the side in preparation for those games and the season in general, yet here we are 3 months down the line 2 games in to the season and not only are we not stronger we are substantially weaker...There is no excuse for it..he knew Cesc was going he knew Nasri was most likely going..he knew we needed a Cb, he knew we could have done with a quality Dcm, he knew we could have done a with a new striker to replace Bendtner, he knew we needed a replacement for Clichy...and yet all he has done is feed us an endless stream of condescending claptrap to cover up his inactivity....It would be bad enough if this were the first time this has happened but it's not it's like groundhog day ...

We all know how great AW use to be, we don't to be told over and over again... but that does not give him the right to make mistake after mistake without reproach, especially whilst he continues to play the all knowing god who does nothing wrong and talks down to us brainless plebs who know nothing..

If things go the way i expect in the next week or so Wenger will deserve every bit of the shitstorm that is coming his way and he'll only have himself to blame...And i, like many others will gladly hold the door open if he wants to leave in reaction to our show of displeasure with his shoddy work.....

[northbankbren]

His comment that "he and he only will chose who and when to buy them".

this would indicate what most knew already, transfers are totally down to him.

[charliegeorgewhocanhitem]

I think that Dein has totally misread the mood. Of course I'd have liked to have won something in the last 6 years, but that is low down on my list of gripes.

Top of my list would be all the b*ll*cks quoted in justification of moving to a new stadium around being able to compete on an even footing against the best teams in Europe.

Our last match of the 2005/6 season was the CL final. Look at the team compared to that which took to the pitch against Udinese:
Lehmann > Szczesny
Eboue > Sagna
Campbell > Vermaelen
Toure > Koscielny
Pires > Rosicky
Hleb > Walcott
Fabregas > Ramsey
Silva > Song
Ljungberg > Gervinho
Cole > Gibbs
Henry > Chamakh

I'd say that there is only maybe one position where we are stronger now than we were then (and that might just be because I've matched the wrong players!).

And the Arsenal bench included Bergkamp, Van Persie, Reyes and Flamini.....compared to Jenkinson, Frimpong, Chamberlin and Djourou. And remember as well that the team of 2005/06 was weaker than those from earlier in Wengers career....!

Criticism of Wenger for failing to achieve the balance between youth and experience and for failing to address glaring weaknesses in the team over the years are completely justified e.g. keeping faith with Almunia, not addressing the need for a striker when Henry and RVP were injured, the lack of a decent Centre Half.

And criticism of the club for so far failing to deliver on it's promise to compete as one of the top clubs in Europe is also fair.

It doesn't need to be this way. There is a middle ground where we should be able to spend £30m net each and every year on player transfers without breaking the bank in Citeh/Chavski style...... At the moment though we're just a feeder club for the big boys!

!10/10 saved me a bit of a type there mate, totally agree with all you said.

[augie]

Dein was shafted by the board and make no mistake about it He was up front about preferring to move/rent wembley and when defeated on that he then proposed bringing in an extra investor to the club which would have lifted some of the financial burden associated with building a new stadium. The reasons as why that 2nd proposal was turned down have never been met public but it certainly suggests to me that the people in power didnt want to give up any part of that to a new investor. You tell me now looking back on that decision would it have been a better move for the club to actually bring in some added wealth to the club to ease the financial pressure of recent years ? If you think it would have been the better move then tell me who was right and who was wrong then ?

I am a huge DD fan and that hasnt changed but right now if I was given a choice on siding with DD and keeping wenger in charge or opposing DD and sacking wenger then I would choose the latter option every day of the week and twice on a sunday. No amount of words from DD can mask wenger's woeful performance as manager over our club in recent years and wenger should be called to justice for that

[into the red]

Dein wasn't shafted at all. The reason he was kicked out was because he went behind the back of the board, attempting to get Kroenke on board by doing a deal with him on his shares, WITHOUT saying a word to the board. Of course he envisaged Kroenke as the owner and himself as chairman. Whatever you think of that, you can't blame the board for being outraged that he attempted a coup without saying a word to them. It was an underhand attempt at gaining control and ousting the old guard. When he was justifiably ejected the first thing he did was find another billionaire, didn't matter if he hadn't the slightest knowledge of Arsenal (which he didn't), and attempt to use him and his loot to again buy the club and reinstate himself as chairman. In the process he destabilised the club, created uncertainty, and nearly enabled a very dubious character to take over the club. All for the benefit of one man only - David Dein.
Now he is doing PR for his mate Wenger, attempting to promote himself again, and hasn't a clue why Wenger is becoming massively unpopular. Dein is the same as all these people - wealthy at the expense of the club, backstabbing, egotistic and only interested in himself. That is the state of football today. And would you really want to be playing at Wembley? Thank god we are not.
Oh, and if you are wondering what Dein is doing giving this interview, you can be sure it is with the approval of Wenger. Why is that? Because Wenger is losing allies inside the club, and is under real pressure not just from the fans but some board members also, who cannot understand why we haven't signed some major players. So Dein sees a chance to stir it up, defend his mate, and position himself should there be any fallout from the debacle that is currently AFC.

[supergeorgegraham]

I didnt see this post when I wrote my other one but pleased I got to see this interview.
Yes it certainly looks like Dein was doing PR for Wenger and maybe himself as well. I am a Dein fan because he did alot of good for Arsenal but find this interview hard to take.
He states that Wenger is doing such a great job when he isnt. I mean if Wenger sold Silvestre and then got Squiallchi then he didnt learn did he.
Not sure what to think as some of the things were confusing. He said we didnt have much money well thats the reason we moved to the Emirates.
Anyway it doesnt answer any questions for me just PR