Arsenal get American makeover

Stan Kroenke's growing influence at Arsenal was clear yesterday after Ivan Gazidis became the club's new chief executive.

The American businessman, who has joined the board as a non-executive director, is understood to have been consulted over the appointment and may, according to sources, have recommended Gazidis to be interviewed in the first place.

The announcement ends a long and, at times, embarrassing search for a chief executive with Arsenal at first offering the job to Celtic's Peter Lawwell, only for him to turn them down, and then have the candidacy of Vodafone executive Paul Donovan vetoed by manager Arsène Wenger.

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Chairman Peter Hill-Wood insisted yesterday, however, that Gazidis was not "Kroenke's man" and claimed that the latter had not been involved in the selection. "I didn't want to embarrass him in any way. He had nothing to do with the appointment," he said. However, it is understood that Kroenke was sounded out.

Wenger was also involved in the process to appoint Gazidis, who is the deputy commissioner for Major League Soccer (MLS) in the United States. He will succeed Keith Edelman who left, abruptly, as managing director six months ago.

The main power-broker at Arsenal remains Danny Fiszman but it is increasingly clear that the club and its directors are warming to the involvement of Kroenke, who they had initially reacted aggressively to when it was suggested that he wanted to take over the club after acquiring a 12 per cent stake.

The steady stock-building of Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov – who is close to owning 25 per cent of the shares – has pushed the board closer to Kroenke, but the businessman has also convinced them that he has the club's best intentions at heart and he also, crucially, wants to be involved in developing the business, particularly in America.

Kroenke and his business associates are already involved in examining ways in which Arsenal can exploit that market, through television, broadband and merchandising deals and Gazidis's expertise will help accelerate that process.

That may set off alarm bells for Arsenal supporters although Gazidis pledged yesterday that the club "will not be Disney-fied". He added: "It is essential that if Arsenal is going to be successful that its traditions are respected. This is not going to be an American, this is an Englishman who grew up with the game, who has deep understanding of Arsenal and is looking to provide sports business practices, for the benefit of all of the stakeholders."

In his current job Gazidis, 44, is heavily involved in the strategy and marketing of the MLS – where he has met Kroenke, who owns the Colorado Rapids, in the past – but is also responsible for negotiating player contracts. He will take over that role at Arsenal with the club keen to draw clear lines between the business and football sides of the club.

It will, despite his experience, have to be a quick learning curve for Gazidis, especially as the January transfer window is coming up fast.

Born in South Africa, Gazidis was raised in Britain from the age of four and trained as a lawyer at Oxford University but made his name in the United States by helping to found the MLS after the 1994 World Cup.

Arsenal will hope that the appointment represents a new phase in the club's development and it is likely that they will appoint at least one other experienced businessman as they re-shape the executive team. The announcement was welcomed by the Arsenal Supporters Trust. "This is a vital appointment at a time when Arsenal face challenging times both on and off the field," it said.

The on-field problems were eased, slightly, by the victory over Dynamo Kiev on Tuesday which meant Arsenal qualified for the last 16 of the Champions League. New captain Cesc Fabregas insisted the players were united and that, with a visit to Chelsea this Sunday, they remained in the title race. "People can say whatever they want about the title race but we have only played 14 games," he said. "It is not over yet."

Group G

Results: Dynamo Kiev 1 Arsenal 1; Porto 3 Fenerbahce 1; Arsenal 4 Porto 0; Fenerbahce 0 Dynamo Kiev 0; Fenerbahce 2 Arsenal 5; Porto 0 Dynamo Kiev 1; Arsenal 0 Fenerbahce 0; Dynamo Kiev 1 Porto 2; Arsenal 1 Dynamo Kiev 0; Fenerbahce 1 Porto 2.

Arsenal's remaining group stage fixture: 10 Dec: Porto (a).