As Arsenal supporters we have many great anniversaries to celebrate.
There was May 26th 1989 – Micky Thomas scoring in the closing seconds to clinch an improbable title away at Anfield. The sight of 40,000 thieving Scousers whining about being robbed was karma on a cosmic scale.
Or how about May 3rd, 1971, when a Ray Kennedy header made us champions of England – an achievement made all the sweeter by the location of our triumph: that’s right, that large public convenience in N17. Where better to take the piss?
Or Christmas Day 1886, when the Royal Arsenal football team was formed in the Royal Oak pub in Woolwich. Bells rang across South London that day and angels in choirs sang songs of praise. Some people thought they were celebrating the birth of a baby who would save mankind from sin. In fact they were celebrating the birth of an almighty team that would save mankind from T*ttenham. Same thing, really.
But I want to propose June 20th as the most significant day in the modern history of Arsenal?
Why? Because that is the date in 1995 when Dennis Bergkamp joined Arsenal FC.
I’m tempted to say he descended among us in a cloud from on high, but in fact I think he arrived on a ferry at Harwich.
That audacious signing (we snaffled the Dutch maestro away from Inter) came under the stewardship of Bruce Rioch, although David Dein is generally credited as being the mastermind behind the deal.
And, to my mind, it started a chain of events that has led Arsenal to its current position as one of the most successful clubs in Europe.
My theory is that without Dennis there would probably have been no Arsene Wenger. Imagine how much easier it must have been for Dein to lure Arsene to our club with Dennis Bergkamp already on the roster.
Even if Arsene had arrived and we did not have Dennis, he may well have struggled in his first couple of seasons and his tenure may not have lasted.
And without Arsene we would almost certainly now be a struggling mid table side or a permanent wannabe like the Spuds.
So for me, June 20th represents the birth of Arsenal as a major player in the new Europeanised world of top football.
To you all I say: “Happy St Dennis’s Day.”
RockyLives
Arsenal News 24/7
arsenalarsenal.net 
Amen to that..
Top, top quality, Rocky.
Happy St Dennis’s Day to you too.
Short, sharp, snappy, snippet Rocky, 🙂
Hope you are enjoying your Caribbean cruise!
My suggested mainstay date? 30th Septmber 1996.
Why? Because that was the date Arsene Wenger became the manager of Arsenal, and the history and philosophy of the club changed, for good. 🙂
Happy St Dennis’s Day.
I miss you so much, Dennis!
No, you were right first time: he decended from a cloud on high.
On the 20th June 1995 we became a big team.
I would suggest May 7th 2006 as the fateful day when everything started to fall apart. That was our last game at the real home of football!
Yes, we did not win a trophy that season as well, but we were gonna win one(the champs league) but it came after May 7th!
Emirates has been a curse!!!
Credit to David Dein also. Without him would we also be where we are? I still fall in the fans bracket of wanting him back at the club, not just for sentimental reasons but because he did more than any other board member to put us where we are and, although i think Gazidis is doing a sound job, I still feel that Dein has a talent in the securing players and deals area that is unsurpassed.
Of course we don’t know exactly what happened behind the scenes and maybe he and AW actually had a little falling out that affected their previously seemless partnership. From the outside however it looks as though he ruffled the feathers of other board members and his sacking is more in line with the removal of someone they considered a problem to them as oppose to a problem for Arsenal football club. That is what worries me is that egos decided his removal rather than what was in the best interest for the club and that we have actually been weakened by his removal and therefore weakened by the egos of the other board members.
Reminds me of the attempt to bring Maradona to the club. Imagine the consequences of that move had it come off.
hear!,hear!bring back “double d! pronto-let’s start a campaign?
I heard a rumour, a good few years ago now, that Wenger was lined up to take charge a good year or so before he arrived. He wanted to see out his contract at Grampus 8, but it was him who advised Dein in advance to sign Bergkamp and Platt. I like to believe it.
u dont call emirate a couse it is the players,the players we heard then are quality players which not to b conperd to this once.
Rocky – happy St Dennis’ Day to you too!!
So many memories and flashbacks with DB, but still not enough. I keep on hoping that he will come back in a coaching role of sorts.
Was there any other Arsenal player that had as much impact on our Club as Dennis?
awesome.. a day to celebrate DB10 🙂
On June 20th 1995 GOD decided to don the famous red & white of the mighty Arsenal and from that day forward I was to witness the greatest player (in my time of supporting the club from 1969) to ever grace the hallowed turf.
DB10 did things with a football (and sometimes without) that I had never before witnessed, he caressed a football and some of his goals will stay with me forever more.
That day in July 2005, at the Emirates, I am not ashamed to say I was very emotional, knowing that the great man would never be there again to astound me with his talent and guile.
In what capacity would you bring DD back? Ivan is a much more approachable Chief Exec and seems to be doing a great deal of work re-uniting the club and supporters. He is also working hard on increasing revenues and I think he deserves big credit.
DD would not come back in any other role I don’t think.
Raddy – what I meant about Theo was his comfy upbringing and great start in life. Which Joey did not have.
* 2006 before I receive abuse – typo! 🙂
Up until that date I would get tickets on a match-by-match basis. But once we signed Bergkamp I knew I had to get a season ticket.
That was the last summer that season tckets were on general sale.
That’s an indication of the difference that signing Dennis made.
Can I also add one personal memory of DB10.
It was at Charlton or Palace in a league game and I had a seat quite near the pitch.
Lee Dixon hoofed an almighty diagonal pass across the field towards Dennis, which must have been 40 foot up at it’s highest.
Dennis received the ball with that genius flick of the toes of his boot, but the ball then dared to bounce up to about knee height.
Dennis stood stock-still, put his hands on his hips and STARED at the ball as though it was an insolent schoolboy, and was still standing in this pose ten seconds after an opposition defender had taken the ball away.
Bloody legend!
Yes a great day for arsenal fans the world over! 🙂 if i recall correctly did we pay 8 point something million for him? back in those days that was a lot of money, and we was competing at the top end of the transfer market, with the likes of kanu, overmars ect… notice how 12 years on we only ever pay just over 10 million a player or 15 max for asharvin. What has happened to the good signings form good teams? these days we buy nobodies from average teams, and always sell two players a season weather we have won the league or not. When will the fans and team see the profits poured back into the club and not the directors pockets?
Brilliant article Rocky. Yes, the arrival of DB did indeed herald the beginning of a new Arsenal and has been said, David Dein should also be credited alongside AW.
I’m not sure you can ever judge the worth of players in different positions and from different eras. DB and TH played together and I can best contrast their attributes by saying that DB was a genius and TH was a phenomenon. That’s not to say that TH didn’t possess genius of his own, but that with DB it was all genius.
Lebster I agree with reinvesting the money in the players but I don’t think it goes in the directors pockets.
Hi my fellow gunners fan,i want to use dis opportunity 2 give my tribute to our great legendary man in person’s of Dennis Bergkamp,a hero to be remembered for his solidarity,his arrival open door of success.on his ceremonial match though i was happy and @once shared tears cos our leader&frontman has come to exit knowing ARSEN WENGER will not make a room for such high profile player again at the club to make history 4 himself and success of the club,and since then d club has became a trophy barrier.
Rasp, fully agree with you: TH was very, very close to Saint Dennis, Nicolaas, Maria Bergkamp. In fact, I cannot choose between them: they were both super-human and loved to play football, to entertain, to create ‘pitch poetry’ and above all to win.
If 20 June 1995 was important, so was 23 September when the Iceman scored his first goal for Arsenal. It seemed to take forever, but when it came it was magnificent and I will never forget how everybody celebrated it (especially IW response was superb: he was happier than Dennis that day).
I’m sure you all know this but he was named after Denis Law by his manc supporting father.
True GM, but why did he then spell it differently – 2 N’s ??
I’ve absolutely no idea Rasp 🙂
Under Dutch law a magistrate had at that time to approve the name before a child could be named it.
In Dutch, the name Denis looks a lot like Denise, so the magistrate would only allow the name through with the second “N”.
It makes me laugh when people start reminiscing about how great David Dein was for the club and how he was instrumental in bringing in Denis Bergkamp etc and if only we had him back everthing would be alright.
Wake up and smell the coffee there is no way in the world we would be able to sign Denis Bergkamp nowadays with or without Saint David Dein….we would be out bid by either ManCity or Chelsea.
It is truly astonishing how some people cannot see the change in the footballing economic landscape and how that would restrict David Dein as much as it restricts Gazidis/the board today.
GM,
I am absolutely not going to tell you who DB10 grew up supporting.
Great thinking Rocky.
Anto is dead, long live Micky.
Hi London,
I assume your @ 12:09 was not in response to my reference to DD
Thanks mjc, that’s a brilliant piece of Footballing trivia – I hope to be able to use it in a pub quiz one day 😛
Diito Rasp, brilliant info mjc
London , with all due respect I think you need to recognize that our financial situation is pretty much the same today as it was in 1995 – we have never been in a position to be the top bidder. So to get Bergkamp was an incredible feat – whoever was responsible.
Dein did have a bit of majic about him and we miss his involvement in our club, it’s never been quite the same since he got toe punted out of AFC.
Hi Micky, I much prefer you to anto 🙂 – should that be panto but he’s taken the pee?
Rasp,
After that twat appeared yesterday, I posted one comment under his name. Forgot to remove it this morning.
Incidently, because I was still anto, I will post that comment again as I think it is relevant:
We appear to have a new transfer tactic. Instead of targeting one player, say Schwartzer, and waiting until the last minute, we appear to be targeting two. Say we are after Parker. It would kake alot of sense to let it be known we were after a similar British Prem style player, in this case Barton. Similar with Cahill and Samba. Ditto, Cervinho and Hazard.
Maybe SK is making his mark in a positive way. Certainly the way in which we negotiate recently would appear to have made us vulnerable to failure in this department.
DB10 and TH were the first truly world class players we had that everyone else wanted to buy after Liam B.
The amazing thing was, as others have alluded to, that they cost relative peanuts to buy.
That, of course, was before Sky and the influx of immensely wealthy Russian and Arab owners changed the ‘sensible’ financial world of football upside down.
Will we ever see their like again? I live in hope! 🙂
Hi Micky/Anto, 🙂
I am easily confused, as you know, but who the hell are you, and what have you done to out West Country maestro? 🙂
Actually, I think your reposted comment about deflected buying interest seems eminently sensible. Just like telling Fergie we are after apples while secretly buying oranges. I need some lunch and a lie down; I am even more confused now than I was when I first read your edict! 🙂
@ GunnerN5 & London,
The entire game has shifted, player power is much more prominent than ever before. We’re looking at an entirely different Arsenal now.
My understanding was that DD was booted out for trying to attract investors like Usmanov and Kroenke without the consent of the board, harsh as a punishment it may be. He clearly had the interests of Arsenal forefront in his mind, but PHW and DF were unlikely to be pleased with it.
It is extremely unlikely that DD will ever grace the Emirates boardroom again if the above is correct.
WG
Thanks mjc.
Hi WG,
I know someone (very well!!!) who knows Barbara Dein (his missus) and I can categorically confirm that DD bleeds Arsenal. He may have been misguided in the way he went about things, but he thought he was doing his best for the club and would love to be involved officially again one day if that were possible.
…. oh and he is still very close friends with Arsène. But I also agree with London that our position and standpoint in the buying hierarchy has changed since Dein’s era.
@ Rasp
I absolutely don’t argue with that at all. It’s clear that he has a strong affinity for the club and did his very best in his tenure with Arsenal. I think he did more good than we will ever know, but his actions have marked his card and I’m not sure Stan would want someone on board that might not sing from the same song-sheet.
WG
I just read a headline that we haven’t contacted toon about barton. I wonder if that’s got anything to do with the fact that it’s all bollocks made up to get clicks on rubbish websites. BTW weren’t England rubbish last night. Totally devoid of any invention. Why do people still go on about buying English. £20m for henderson? madness
WG,
I take it you know that DD tried to get Stan involved before he (inexplicably) turned to Usamov. It was his flirtation with Kroenke that cost him his job.
There has never been any doubt that David Dein bleeds Arsenal. But as the more observant have pointed out things have moved on since he was at Arsenal.
GunnerN5
I agree that proportionally Arsenal finances are similar to what they when Bergkamp arrived………..but Chelsea and Mancity’s are not and that was the point I was trying to make to all those above who seem to think that if somehow Dein came back we would suddenly be able to buy players like Denis Bergkamp again.
Flirtation? He sold his shares to him.
Hi gm,
I agree in part. England had no invention in midfield and Muamba was complete pants – why he didn’t start with Lansbury I don’t know. But Smalling and Jones looked pretty good, especially carrying the ball out of defence. They often waltzed past the ineffectual Muamba and looked like our most potent attacking midfielders.
Yes I know gm, Dein sold his shares to R&W Holdings (Usamov) I’d love to ask him what that was all about – surely not just a fit of pique?
…. you being the more observant there then London 😆
……. “David Dein’s departure from Arsenal was met with a strong reaction from key figures at the club.
Arsene Wenger described David Dein’s departure “as a sad day for the club”. Following his departure, Wenger was believed to have asked Dein whether he wished him to resign from the post of manager in support for his friend. Dein told Wenger that he should not leave Arsenal as the club would suffer greatly from his loss as manager if he decided to leave.
Arsene Wenger stated “It is a huge disappointment because we worked very closely together, David has contributed highly to the success of the club in the last 10 years and even before that as well. Red and white are the colours of his heart.”
Arsene Wenger also stated “David Dein is needed in football because this guy has revolutionised this club (Arsenal) and also English football. He is top quality.”
Former Arsenal hero, Ian Wright described David Dein’s departure as follows:
“I know the players aren’t happy. I know Thierry Henry’s not happy. We’re talking about a man [David Dein] who goes into the dressing room after every single game, shakes every player by the hand and who knows all the youth team players.”
“I know this for a fact that the manager and the players are 100 per cent behind David Dein and I can see real repercussions coming off the back of this.”
Thierry Henry claimed that David Dein’s departure as vice-chairman had dismayed him and left him in no doubt that it was time to move on.
Wearing my arsenal tinted, manc hating glasses I missed that Rasp. I thought Lansbury was a level above the others though. Jack not being there is a great excuse to blame it all on Arsenal and Wenger thouigh.
GM, it’s about time we started flexing our muscles and applying pressure to stop our key players getting involved in meaningless friendlies or playing when they are exhausted and need a break.
My last comment on Dein is that he may have been guilty of underestimating Arsene’s ability to keep the club at the top whilst having virtually no money to spend . Perhaps that’s why he turned to Usamov, but it does look like he sold his soul to the devil.
@ Rasp
You’re correct, that is exactly why DD was removed from the board. He contacted Kroenke without permission and suggested he invest in the Arsenal Broadband brand and in the club.
If you were Kroenke, I’m sure you’d be grateful but you’d be thinking “this guy’s a Pimp, I can’t trust him not to start broadcasting to other investors because he did it to me”
WG
I agree totally Rasp. He’s in the senior squad anyway.
I agree WG, the Usamov thing doesn’t make any sense and probably made it impossible for DD to return – particularly because of Usamov’s subversive behaviour recently.
I was fortunate enough to see all of DB10’s career at Arsenal. His first goal was really special and it was a privilege to witness his genius. But he is still only No.3. in my fave AFC players after TH and TA.
Re: England. They had no chance when the FA chose Pearce to manage. To play Muamba in place of a creative MF when the side were screaming for some invention was criminal. I was impressed with Jones and can see why SAF and AW were prepared to spend so much money on a kid. He will be a top, top player.
Rasp. There were 75 million reasons why he sold to Usamov.
You think it was just about the money Raddy? He was already very wealthy. Hey ho, everyone has their price I suppose.
I have no doubt that DB10 was the greatst player during my 50 or so year time as a supporter.
However, I have always flet that he was never the same after that semi final penalty miss. the confidence went, as did some of the skill.
Can we even imagine what mght have been had he scored that penalty?
Even so, how lucky we were and are to have had such a player in our team.
Rooney world class? Do me a favour.
He is not worthy to tie DB10’s boots.
Rasp. I think it was a very commercially successful F.U. to Hill-Wood.
I would love to know what Fizman thought about Dein’s treachery.
OK, I am happier to believe it was mainly Boardroom testosterone, with a chunk of healthy profit and portion of bad judgement 😆
16th Anniversary since the last time Arsenal signed a proven Superstar. Yes in years past Arsene Wenger has created Superstars but the time lapse since we last signed a ready made Superstar is a damning fact & a disgrace for a club who spun us the line that moving to Emirates would mean we would compete at top end of transfer market. A big lie whilst the club is owned now by 2 billionaires, a board who sold out to make mammoth fortunes whilst fans get squeezed harder &
harder and the club sell players as a ‘ Harrods ‘ but buy players in ‘Lidl’ !!
Who’s Usamov?
😆 chas, he’s Ivan Bollockov’s cousin
Chas 🙂 you are worse than me
How do you mean worse, Evonne? 🙂
Part 1 of 6!!!! The goal against the spuds at the end is completed in part 2, so don’t worry…..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wEA2Hp-2oqc
Rooney world class? Do me a favour.
He is not worthy to tie DB10′s boots.
Not fit to wipe his arse in fact.
Don’t you mean oodya nikabolokov?
Usmanov makes a lovely Mr. Creosote.
http://twitpic.com/5ea9ak
I love the way some people think of him (jabba) as a saviour and dismiss all allegations about him. I could imagine people making a case for being owned by hitler if he promised us messi and ronaldo.
Haha, GM.
If Adolf Hitler flew in today / They’d send a limousine anyway
My favourite Clash song chas
Messi and Ronaldo eh GM, mmm…thinks, Hitler wasn’t a bad artist you know, and as a disciplinarian, he was second to none 🙂
Are you the mystery brunette, Evonne?
http://bit.ly/msUgSJ
Talking of artists, Paul Simenon ain’t bad either!
Hi Rasp, 🙂
It is easily forgotten that Dein bought a huge chunk of shares from Hill-Wood, who derided him for doing so, as he thought DD had bought useless shares and had tied up/wasted his money doing so. That was before the Sky era, so ‘Last’ and ‘laugh’ spring to mind.
In turn, DD sold a slice of those shares to his friend Danny Fizman, who had no previous involvement with Arsenal, for relatively small money.
Fizman, or his estate subsequently made a £100m profit on those shares, so to my mind, it is a moot point as to who ‘betrayed’ whom.
It is always the ‘winners’ who write history, of course, and when DD was voted off the Board by Hill Wood (waiting to get his own back, I suspect), and Danny Fizman, they used the club’s public relations department to paint the story the way they wanted, much to the detriment of DD.
How ironic that the man DD wanted involved on the Arsenal board, Kroenke, now owns the club. Dein was right in that respect, wasn’t he?
Great public speaker too Mickey
I’ll have to take a look into that, Micky, ta.
Messi and Ronaldo………..how about a really, really big apology?
And we don’t want/need his sort RA
Hi Chas, 🙂
Does that Red Star at the top of your gravatar have any significance, comrade? 🙂
GM,
Are you having a laugh? Never really met him, so shouldn’t comment really.
My english is worse than usual today. Better go back to work where it does not matter.
Hi GM,
Which one don’t we want? 🙂
Personally, I don’t have a lot of time for any of them, and they don’t seem to have any time for the fans who, in every meaningful way, ARE the club.
Most people are aware of how Dein shot himself in the foot and most agree that there is no way back. The reason the topic came up was that there are some who romantically believe that if were still involved things would somehow be different i.e we would still be able to buy the modern day Denis Bergkamps. My point is that we wouldn’t due the economic playing field being so different now than to how it was when Dein was around.
True RA
I hope we sign someone soon
Hi Micky,
I think GM was referring to Hill Wood’s infamous put down of Kroenke.
Foot in mouth man. Not you ……. Hill Wood! 🙂
Hi RA, 🙂
More of an indicator of Joe Strummer’s allegiances rather than mine. The red seemed appropriate Arse-wise, too, I suppose.
Isn’t it about time you had a gravatar, RA?
http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://photos.travelblog.org/Photos/94701/378500/f/3526437-Big-Red-Baboon-Arse-0.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.travelblog.org/Photos/3526437&usg=__P09ToQEGRVZFOsdmQ9WMmHvvnBw=&h=400&w=600&sz=72&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=RzeDYnWuxBF06M:&tbnh=160&tbnw=214&ei=BE7_Tb3ZMMqq8AOK65yqCQ&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dred%2Barse%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DX%26rls%3Dcom.microsoft:en-gb:IE-SearchBox%26rlz%3D1I7GEUA_en%26biw%3D1276%26bih%3D765%26tbm%3Disch%26prmd%3Divns&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=136&vpy=102&dur=590&hovh=183&hovw=275&tx=148&ty=80&page=1&ndsp=22&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0&biw=1276&bih=765
There you go RA
London,
You are right about DD representing the past at Arsenal.
What some people who refer to the ‘golden age’ when we bought excellent players (most of the time), like TH, Overmars, etc, was the effect DD was reputed to have on helping AW to make up his mind.
Popular perception is that AW is notoriously slow in making his mind up about a players worth, and seems to lose out on signing them because of his concern about getting value for money, which in itself is laudable objective for the club.
I’m not sure that is true, myself, and like everyone else I have no first hand knowledge of the facts.
I still think SK will be good for the club, and I believe the way this summer’s transfer activity is handled will be the first opportunity we have to see his influence, and I don’t mean massive signings, rather getting the business done.
Many people appear rather suspicious of him, and I don’t understand why.
Chas/GM,
Thanks for your concern about my lack of a Gravatar and suggestions for suitable options! 🙂
Actually i have been looking thru the Troll photo archives for one that looks like me.
It has to be admitted that it is depressing to face up to the cruel reality that I am a large shambling uglybug! 🙂
Someone suggested Quasimodo, but that is cruel and inaccurate, to good old Quasie, because he is too small and no where near as ugly!! 😦
Micky,
Up to now I have ignored the rumours that you are SK’s love child.
But you are beginning to make me wonder!! 🙂
RA,
Are the tash and mat a giveaway?
RA, I bear a passing resemblance to Tattoo from Fantasy Island but I try not to let it get me down.
Part 2 of he with the twinkiling feet, anybody?
The goal at the Baseball Ground on 5 mins. Wow.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6_NdESOAiw
twinkiling, haha
“Popular perception is that AW is notoriously slow in making his mind up about a players worth.”
I have an issue with this “Popular” perception.
Chas – I could be the mystery brunette….if I was 30 years younger and had my bum where her tits are 🙂
My son has just reminded me that when he was on half-term junior Gunners summer course at Highbury, they had a player giving an inspirational chat to the attendees. His English wasn’t very good, we have never heard of him and were much more excited about seeing Ian Wright in the downstairs carpark singing to himself ‘Money, money, money, must be funny..’
Little did we know that that unknown foreigner was to become the biggest legend of our time. Yes, I met Dennis the Menace and blew it, didn’t even ask for an authograph
Evonne :).
You and RA are a right self-deprecating pair, aren’t you.
Evonne,
Oh the disappointment. You blew it big style in my book. Anything wrong with drugging him and producing an Heir. Lady, where is your sense of duty?
Kelsey,
Where is our Monday signing?
Put it this way, once past midnight, can you reveal the answer to the “Who is it” question?
Hi Micky,
Gervinho is pretty much a done deal, but as usual, the process of actually finalising will no doubt be long and drawn out.
I was derided last week for saying that I thought the Samba deal was a real possibility, and I still think that is the case although Blackburn are playing hardball
Micky and Chas – the pair of you, honestly 🙂
Is anybody counting days till 13th August? I don’t think I can wait that long
What is Dennis doing these days? He has young family I believe and more money than any other footballer. But apart from that?
He is a coach at Ajax, Evonne.
Thanks RA! That’s good, coz one day he’ll come back as our coach
Afternoon RA,
Does he have a box at the Ems or an apartment in the Highbury Development?
It’s usually the selling club that drag their feet not the buyer.
Let’s say Fabregas wants to leave, who is dragging the deal out the buyer or the seller?
The answer is obviously the seller because Arsenal want to try and push the price up or attract another buyer to add leverage.
In Fabregas’ case their is unlikely to be another buyer but my guess is that Lille and agent are pushing the name Gervinho around every club in Europe in the hope of finding some leverage against Arsenal and while this happens they are in no hurry to conclude the deal.
The tables turn if and when Lille find out that no one else is interested as happened in the Arshavin deal.
Hiya Rasp,
I know he had a box at the Emirates, like TH, but I cannot find any info about whether they retained the boxes or disposed of it.
I expect GIE or XXV1 will know. But will they tell, that is the question! 🙂
David Dein – thrown out by the Arsenal board.
Thrown out by Kroenke.
Thrown out by Usmanov.
Certainly must be a great negotiator.
I would love to see Dein back at the club. He has been missed. Bergkamp and Wenger were an odd pair, Wenger once describing him as an enigma. Arsenal need to make that kind of signing today. It would lift the place and show people that we mean business again. I don’t think they will. You might get Cahill, Samba, Parker and Gervinho all of whom are good players that will help, but Arsenal need a Bergkamp.
There is another possibility for the seemingly protracted transfers of foreign players, as opposed to EPL players.
That is that the contracts of the players can be bought and sold between the relevant clubs, but they cannot be registered with the respective FAs until the 1st of July. Thus falling into the International transfer cycle.
So, foreign purchases may be announced by some clubs shortly, altho’ awaiting registration, but Arsenal have a tradition of waiting to announce deals after they have had the i’s dotted and the t’s crossed.
We will see, in due course.
Jamie. I agree. We need a signing that says wwe are The Arsenal, not some selling club in N. London.
AW should be breaking the transfer record just to show we mean business.
e.g. If AW signed Eto’o he may well cost more than he is worth from a football point of view, but as a signal that we are not going to be intimidated and that we can and will sign quality, he is worth whatever he costs.
Won’t happen though ……
Rocky quality post Just like Dennis…………..
Dennis is a legend, the best I have ever seen…………….
No one touches him for pure vision and technical ability……………
Walking along
Singing a song
Walking in the Bergkamp Wonderland……….Off to watch my DB10 Videos now…
Always liked Eto’o. That would be a great buy!
Bring back Dein!!!!! PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Wenger needs a kick up his arse.
Bergkamp has a ‘g’ in it.
part 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HIh3YthwZb0
Evening all missed an interesting day it seems.
DB10…..I never saw him wear the shirt in the flesh 😦 you can add PV4, TH14 and others to his name but I think he was the one I regret missing the most.
RA I have no idea whether they still have boxes although three years ago DB10 still had one as John Radford pointed it out to my parents on the stadium tour.
Just out of interest my brother had no problem getting a box for Norwich game at the Emirates £6,500 for 15 guests (including food, pre match drinks …..blah…blah…blah….and a £5 matchday programme). As my brother said to the salesman “the free programme is the dealmaker” 😀
I have no interest in going there, whilst I’d be happy to go in to an Emirates box for the experience one day I have no intention of doing it while Arsenal are playing.
What utter bollocks
Have just watched Part 2 of the DB10 goals……anyone else notice how poor the opposition was then? I mean some of the defending was clueless, the league really has changed immeasurably over the last ten years.
Hello chums (if any of you are out there).
Bergkamp: The god amongst gods. And I don’t care how blasphemous that is, Dennis was (a) one of the best players ever to have played the game, (b) played his best years for us (still can’t believe that) and (c) personified the shift from Old Arsenal to New Arsenal.
Has he still got a box at Ashburton? Sorry to disappoint you RA, I’m not 100% sure, but I thought he does still have it.
Dein: I have mixed views on DD. Much of what has made the club great in the past 15+ years couldn’t have happened without him, and those who lobby for his return have a real point. And as has already been said, Bergy wouldn’t have joined without DD’s vision. But as Jenkinson so accurately put it at 6.12pm, DD hasn’t done very well in staying the right side of the line in these things. His wanting to move us to Wembley (oh yes he did), in going behind the Board’s back to bring in Kroenke and in selling to Usmanov all show his judgment to be questionable. And I know a lawyer who prepared his evidence for a big piece of litigation who described DD as being the least reliable witness she had ever prepared as a witness. But despite all of that, I would like him to come back to the club, we’d be the better for it.
Finally, has anyone else seen the bizarre red card issued to Thierry Henry yesterday? It’s at http://www.101greatgoals.com/videodisplay/thierry-henrys-scandalous-red-card-portland-timbers-11393730/. Finally, there’s a referee who is actually worse than the ones we have in England.
Gunner,
You are an imposter, anyone with your blogname would appreciate DB, we’d be delighted if you don’t bother to visit this site again.
Rasp
I think Happy St Dennis’s Day is scraping the barrel. If we were winning trophies we wouldn’t be on about this so wise up
Boring Gunner, you’re just boring. When you acquire a sense of humour, come back.
Or better still, if you think you can write something that interests others, stop bleating about what others write and write something yourself.
Rasp – well done spoting the imposter 🙂
26may – I would like DD back; me might be a bit dodgy, but hey, remember Henry Norris? Scum would never forget him 🙂
Evonne, if Henry Norris were around today, I’d be slagging him off, don’t worry! He was a lying, defrauding cheat after all. DD is an angel by comparison with Norris!
It shows how far we have falling when muppets appreciate things like this, probably the prawn sandwich brigade
Evonne just because I have a differing view to you does not make me an imposter and those smiley things are so fucking annoying
Gunner, cut the language and behave like a grown up and you can continue to blog on here. Do yourself a favour and have a look back through the archives to see just how varied our articles are and how accomodating the site is to all opinions as long as they are expressed in a friendly way.
“those smiley things are so fucking annoying”
oh really?
🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
Now piss off and learn some manners.
Rasp someone else needs a cursing warning and tell him to grow up also
Gunner,
26may has been a major contributor on this site and written numerous quality articles, if he has become impatient at your totally unwarranted attack on fellow Arsenal supporters then I completely understand – he has earned the right, you however seem only intent on being irritating.
If you can come up with anything constructive or interesting to write about Arsenal by all means go ahead, otherwise please refer back to my first response to you.
26, that’s two 🙂 🙂 too many!
TotalArsenal
The mug was trying to be smart and you found him out, well done
Hi Rasp, it seems to have gone very quiet regarding Gervinho, yet you believe it is a done deal. Of course, I hope YOU are right, but what do you base your optimism on?
Hi TA,
As usual, I apply my own inbuilt filter to trawl through the media and separate the wheat from the chaff and the result has been that we are going to sign Gervinho. In other words its just a strong hunch based on the pattern and history of our signings over the last 5 years …. but I could be wrong!
Hi TA
It’s not Gervinho I’m worried about, as much as Nasri’s contract and the defensive reinforcements we need. I know things are more complicated than we usually know but Arsenal really do seem determined to draw out contract negotiations to the max.
Hi Gunner
Just don’t use words as per your 9.40 post – it adds no value to the debate. If you feel that a St Dennis day is nonsense, you should try to reason why that’s your view. It looks like to me that you are more interested in the here and now and don’t care about our past very much. For most, if not all Gooners DB is the embodiment of the Arsenal we are today, and the legacy he has left behind is something to treasure. What is wrong with that?
TA
I agree he’s a total legend but to say tomorrow is a massive day for arsenal is ridiculous
Well Rasp, I like the sound of that!
26, agreed – these are testing times. Uncertainty re Nasri and Cesc is frustrating: surely we are not going to lose both of them? 😦
Gunner,
It all depends on your perspective. Those of us who were mesmerised week after week by DB’s brilliance may well consider this day as a landmark in Arsenal’s history. He brought, artistry, success, trophies and the admiration of football supporters the world over, – so I’d say we’re right to be proud that he wore the Arsenal shirt.
Gunner, this is the sort of blog where we do things like this now and again, especially when not much is happening. Where is your sense of humour? If this is not for you, the best thing to do is look for a blog that suits your preferences better, and I am not being condescending to you.
Gunner,
We are publishing an article tomorrow by a new writer; Jamie. He is 31 and so may be of your generation. He is reminiscing about his first game at the age of 6 back in 1986 – so you see, even younger supporters can be nostalgic about the past, and relate those days to our current situation.
TA
“especially when not much is happening”
I rest my case
Gunner,
What do you want us to do, invent stories like so many of other sites? There are plenty to choose from if that’s what you are looking for, just go on NewsNow Arsenal and take your pick.
You could a derogatory article on spurs lol
Well Gunner, if you want to write something for AA reflecting your views, please use the ‘Be our Guest’ tab at the top of the page. We will publish articles that conform with the standards outlined in ‘About AA’
We have published articles in the past asking how many of a competitors team would get into the Arsenal side and have usually had to spend the day moderating and deleting abusive stuff so we have learned to keep it all Arsenal orientated. Our pre-match reviews and match reports in season will always include an analysis (not always complimentary) of our opponents.
OK I’m off to bed, night all
Anyway I thought the 20th was today?
Gunner it’s nice to reminisce occasionally that’s all today’s post was. Accept it at face value and move on if it’s not appealing to you.
I’ll take ten posts like this until August 13th if it means there are less rumour mongering (unlikely here) or constant harking back to what went wrong last year.
Feels like the whole transfer market is waiting for one big move and then we will see everyone’s intentions. So far most buys have been speculative (Henderson, Jones) or friends reunited (Nolan). Let’s hope the one that kicks it off is not Cesc. Let it be Tevez or Vidic and someone else can have the heartache for a change.
[…] June 20th Is A Massive Day For Arsenal As Arsenal supporters we have many great anniversaries to celebrate. […]
So that was the day I followed Arsenal 🙂 I had to admit I followed Arsenal becos of DB10. After DB10, it is TH14 who was/is my favourite player. Now, sadly I cant identify with any of the guys. Nevertheless still supporting Arsenal
This is good to know as an Arsenal Fan; I love Arsenal.
I just beat Arsenal 8-0, with Leicester City on Football Manager 2011*
* may have involved taking over Arsenal, putting Van Persie in goal, and playing no strikers, after telling every player they are “disappointing” and not trying hard enough, and fining them two weeks wages for no reason, and then quitting as manager after the math. But that’s irrelevant.
Every now and then a gem is unearthed in blog world and this little nugget from a solicitor/barrister is just that.
“And I know a lawyer who prepared his evidence for a big piece of litigation who described DD as being the least reliable witness she had ever prepared as a witness.”
Morning all
I have noticed that Usmanov has increased his stake in AFC plc. Can anyone (GiE) explain, why he is doing that? Isn’t Kroenke’s position sealed?
Morning Gunner 🙂 🙂 🙂
I missed your comment last night, what a shame 😦
You need to chill out a bit and use more smileys
xx
Mornin’ all! Y’alreet?
Evonne I’m not certain, but once he hits 30% doesn’t he still have to make a formal offer for the remaining shares? Just like Kroenke?
Maybe he’s just trying to show how “committed” he is, though I suspect it’s just to make a healthy profit when the team starts fulfilling its potential.
WG
Hiya Wigan
Thank you for answering! I have no idea about the 30% or other company laws
The profit bit surprises me too, he is soooooo wealthy that any profit from Arsenal is small in his empire. So the question for me remains WHY?
Just as well we have so many accountants and lawyers on this blog, someone is bound to know…..
Morning all,
Gunner is one of those fans who doesn’t see why anyone else should be happy if he’s as miserable as sin.
New club motto….
Miseria Concordia Crescit
Chas 🙂
What never ceases to amaze me is the internet aggression, virtual cyber rage
What do you make of that Usmanov business?
Chas 😆 , we are just another twist in his sobriety 😦 😦 😦
That guy is beyond repair.
Hiya Total 🙂
Rasp promised a cracking post from a youngster. I am very curious to read it
Evonne, me too. When are you going to write a post? With all your Arsenal history and passion for our team, there must be a few stories in you?
Just a question for you: why are there so many good Polish goalkeepers? At the moment, both my childhood team Roda JC (Przemyslaw Tyton) and Arsenal have a Polish guy between the poles… What’s the secret?? 😕 🙂
WG, I believe that if Usmanov passes the 30% threshold he would, as you say, also be required to make an offer based on the highest price he’s paid in the previous 12 months. I think there are some exceptions, perhaps including that it would not be required if Kroenke said in his offer document that he would not accept any future offer from Usmanov. Am a bit hazy on that bit though.
Chas: “Misery through harmony”, love it!
There are only three countries that now produce good keepers: Poland, Spain and the USA. Fact.
🙂
Morning 26,
I get a feeling that something fishy is happening in the background, Usmanov is far too shrewed to waste a ruble.
Total – there are also lost of builders from Poland 🙂
I am not sure about the Polish goalkeeping high, but my almost-ex-husband is Irish and he once told me that at one stage many goalkeepers in UK were from Ireland, could that be a trend?
Is it easier to be a goalie than say a striker or a defender? Providing you are big and flexible, I would imagine so
Total – you are right about my many memories, stories and too much passion for AFC. But I cannot write, maths are my forte, not languages
26may – USA, really??
Evonne, as in: why produce your own goallies when you can get them cheap, easy and better qualifieid from Poland (and Ireland in the past)?? 🙂
Your writing skills are great: don’t talk yourself into this nonsense! Are you an accountant as well??
Here’s a thought about Usmanov….purely speculation
Increasing his stake obviously cements his position of the blocking stake ….. good for the fans …… and also means any dividends would be paid to Usmanov as well as Kroenke (not in Stans interest).
But his aim is to get on the board if he keeps offering to bankroll spending he will garner fan support (especially amongst the current revolters) to that end. If he then bankrolls we can spend £40m more than currently under FFP, if we are outside FFP we would be forced to restructure debt to equity which would require more shares being issued….those shares would BR bought by Usmanovs debt (from bankrolling) and suddenly the he has control of the club.
He has to get on the board first which is just unlikely.
Morning,
New post………
I am a spurs fan and i agree. He was a spurs fan as a kid and loved GH. Sugar did not want him because Jurgen left after one year. This decision killed spurs and was the first chain in spurs losing the tag of attractive soccer to arsenal. A killer blow that in some part has placed your club miles ahead of ours
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