Arsenal's Biggest Shareholder Blocks Dein - 23/09/2007

Arsenal's biggest shareholder diamond merchant Danny Fiszman has said that he has no intention of selling his 24.11 per cent shareholding in the club. Although he has gone into tax exile in Switzerland, he says that he wants to increase his involvement in the running of the club. He said, 'I am not about to sell my stake. I have not set a price because I have not thought about selling. Moving to the Emirates Stadium was like moving into a dream home.' This is a blow to the hopes of former vice-chairman David Dein of returning to Arsenal. He has argued that foreign investment was needed to keep the team competitive and has lined himself up with Alisher Usmanov and Farhard Moshiri. They are the co-owners of Red and White Holdings of which Dein is the chairman. There will be many more twists and turns before this saga comes to an end.

Gunners Board See Kroenke In New Light

Arsenal's board is understood to be preparing further talks with US billionaire Stan Kroenke who holds 12.2 per cent of the club's shares, amid worries about the size of the stake being built up by Russian metals magnate Alisher Usmanov. Red and White Holdings, the investment vehicle owned by Mr Usmanov and London-based fund manager Farhad Moshiri announced last week that they have lifted their stake from 14.58 per cent to 21 per cent, a total investment of more than £110m. Among the shareholders understood to be selling to Red and White, chaired by former club vice-chairman David Dein, are Lansdowne Partners, a hedge fund that held 3 per cent, and Birol Nadir, son of Asil Nadir (the businessman who fled to Northern Cyprus to escape charges of theft) who held a further 3 per cent.

The Gunners board had in effect cold-shouldered Mr Kroenke, owner of several US sports franchises, despite a link up with his US soccer team. However, their atitude to him to changed after David Dein, who encouraged Stan Kroenke to buy into the club, was ousted in a boardroom split. A meeting in June between Mr Kroenke and board members was described as cordial but inconclusive. But after Mr Dein sold his stake last month to Mr Usmanov and Mr Moshiri, insiders at the club have been saying that there has been a change in the board's approach towards Mr Kroenke, now that he appears to have detached himself from David Dein. Mr Kroenke now appears to willing to build a long-term relationship with the club, which is a coded way of saying that he would not be party to a hostile takeover. Hence, contact has been renewed with a view to a further meeting in London in October.

The Arsenal board has set its face against the route taken by three of the other big four clubs who have sold out to foreign investors. It may be that Arsenal is the one club that can stand out against the trend. It has always been a club with links into the traditional British establishment, albeit renewed by links with countries of the British Commonwealth. It has an Old Etonian chairman, the late Queen Mother was a supporter, as, it is claimed, is the present Queen (Prince William supports Aston Villa). I noticed yesterday that one Arsenal fanzine was carrying a story 'David Dein and His New Foriegn Friends.' One Arsenal fan contributed to the radio phone-in 606 claiming that he liked a club where there was one dominant figure on the board. Events at Chelsea (on which we will comment later) may have reinforced preferences for the status quo, together with the fact that Arsene Wenger is getting good results without the injection of money that David Dein claimed was needed.