Dennis Bergkamp reveals Daniel Ek reached out twice to Josh Kroenke since having initial bid rejected and “will not quit” since he finds an acquisition to be crucial
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Bergkamp: "Daniel does not see a takeover as the purchase of a fun toy to play with."
Dennis Bergkamp says he backed Daniel Ek’s bid to buy Arsenal because he wants to restore the club’s DNA with an owner who understands a football club cannot be run just as a business.
Daniel Ek publicly expressed his interest in purchasing the North London club last month and Bergkamp is part of the project. The Spotify co-founder also saw an offer in the region of £1.8billion rejected earlier this month, with Stan and Josh Kroenke, via their company Kroenke Sports Enterprises (KSE), making clear that they have no interest in selling.
Bergkamp: “Daniel does not see a takeover as the purchase of a fun toy to play with.”
For the first time, Dennis Bergkamp has spoken publicly about his involvement with Daniel Ek and the Spotify co-founder’s attempts to buy the club from KSE. The 52 year old Dutchman has backed the Ek, revealing conversations which made a positive impression, and insisted that for Arsenal to compete at the highest level again it needs to be run first and foremost as a football club, and not a business and insisted that Ek won’t ‘quit’ on an Arsenal takeover.
Bergkamp, who was speaking after he was inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame, has backed Ek’s bid along with fellow Arsenal legends Thierry Henry and Patrick Vieira.
“Like Patrick Vieira and Thierry Henry, it’s hard for me to recognise the Arsenal from our time,” Bergkamp told Dutch football magazine Voetbal International. “The ambition to win trophies is in Arsenal’s DNA. Never accept a loss. That mentality has slowly disappeared. I feel there’s a sense of resignation within the current situation. That is very serious.
“It’s like it’s normal, given the financial conditions, that Arsenal are ending up somewhere in the middle of the league behind the top clubs. That’s not how it should be with this club. Arsenal’s DNA needs to be repaired.”
“Daniel has been a true Arsenal fan all his life. He also was concerned about the downfall of the club,” Bergkamp said. “When the Super League was dominating the news on a daily basis, Daniel pretty much exploded. That was the moment he wanted to press ahead and got in touch with us.
“During a Zoom meeting with Thierry, Patrick and myself, he shared his concerns and his plans with us. That immediately made an impact, and it became clear to me what a big fan Daniel is. I think that’s important: Daniel does not see a takeover as the purchase of a fun toy to play with.
“He understands the passion of a football fan because he is one himself. He also wants to considerably increase the influence of the fans. For example, by making them part of the club’s board. We think that’s very important. We want to get closer to the fans.
“Daniel realises that the problems that Arsenal have cannot be resolved just like that. Simply spending a bit of money and firing the coach doesn’t cut it. If Arsenal want to compete towards the top of the league next season, they will need a top player in every department. The problem is that the club has been lacking appeal for a while now among players of that calibre. Therefore, structural changes will have to be made. This is the backbone of Arsenal. It will be a far-reaching and long-term project.
“You need to start at the top and that is why a takeover is crucial. This way, Arsenal can continue with an owner who understands that a football club should not be run like a business. No matter how much money is involved in English football, Arsenal is and will always be a football club. Therefore, it needs to be managed accordingly at all levels.”
“First, Daniel needs to get his takeover bid accepted. After that, it would be logical to make use of the knowledge we have gained during and after our careers. We are ready and so is Daniel. The fans are excited. Now it is up to the present leadership of the club.”
“Football, passion and ambition need to be at the centre of things again. We have plenty of ideas about the technical details, but there is little point in jumping to conclusions,” Bergkamp stated in his interview.
Arsenal continue with their initial woes as North London club will end this season outside the top four for a fifth successive campaign in the Premier League. The fans have grown overly agitated against the ownership of Kroenkes’ in recent time, with things turning more sour after Arsenal’s involvement in the Super League project, with Bergkamp and many others of the view that a total overhaul and restructuring is needed.
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Sayantan Dutta
(266 Articles Published)