Best owners and administrators in English football - A Tribute to the late Mr. Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha

DAVID DEIN

A former vice-Chairman at Arsenal, David Dein was not the owner of Arsenal. He did own shares in the club, but was more involved in the administrative and footballing facets, and oversaw arguably the greatest period in the club's history.

Dein was appointed to the Arsenal board in 1983 when the club despite its name and tradition had not won the league since 1971 and was some way behind Liverpool in terms of winning titles or European Cups. It was clear that things needed to change to get the club up, and Dein did bring some new insights to the board, and had become a respected businessman in his own right prior to joining.

In 1986, Arsenal appointed former player George Graham as manager, and things changed a lot. In his first season, Arsenal won the League Cup in 1987, defeating the mighty Liverpool with Rush, Nicol, Hansen, et al at Wembley. The following year, Arsenal lost the League Cup to Luton Town, but in 1989 faced off with Liverpool again, culminating in the ever-famous Anfield 1989 win and Michael Thomas's last-minute title winner.

The title was won again in 1991, with the FA Cup and League Cup in 1993 (the first domestic cup double in English football history), but ended when Graham was sacked due to the bung scandal in 1995.

Dein and the board appointed Bruce Rioch from Bolton Wanderers, but spats with star forward Ian Wright, and disputes with the board concerning transfer targets led to his dismissal in 1996.

What came after this is what cemented Dein's status as a prime Arsenal benefactor. He had met Arsene Wenger several years before he became the manager, and Dein knew from the off that he was an ideal future Arsenal manager.

After Graham left, he had tried to persuade the board to sign him up, but instead, they chose Rioch. After Rioch left, however, they opted for Wenger and the rest is history.

Wenger left Arsenal in 2018, but stands as their best ever manager, winning three Premier League titles (including the 2004 Invincibles), and seven FA Cups. The 13th FA Cup trophy won in 2017 vs. Chelsea was an all-time record for a club in the competition, and the seventh for Wenger was an all-time managerial record, which was broken for the first time in many decades.

Dein left Arsenal in 2008, in the wake of the Kroenke takeover, but his legacy stands as providing the footballing executive knowledge to help Arsenal gain glory. He also played a major part in developing the Premier League as a breakaway top division in England and held senior roles in the Football Association and European bodies.