The Arsenal Supporters Trust sent a letter of welcome to new CEO Ivan Gazidis. Here’s his response, that was relayed to members at the Trust’s monthly meet on Monday…

I very much appreciate the warm welcome I have received from the AST and, indeed, from everyone associated with the club. Particularly in these challenging times, Arsenal represents values as precious as they are timeless. I hope that I will be a worthy steward of those values and continue the best traditions of the club, while always keeping it looking forward with optimism and moving it forward with dynamism, creativity and passion.

No club, least of all Arsenal, is anything without its supporters. That is inherent in the very word “club.” I am looking forward to meeting with AST leadership once I have my feet “under the desk” and to discussing Arsenal issues with your wider membership in May.

Believe me, I fully appreciate that we all want the very best for the club and are part, literally and figuratively, of the same team. There has never been a time when Arsenal has been better positioned for sustained success and I am more excited than you can imagine about the possibilities I can see for the future. I am looking forward to making that journey with Arsenal’s superb supporters.

With best regards

Ivan

Gazidis is certainly singing from the same hymn sheet as the Trust, in the interview he gave for Arsenal TV, he talked about the concept of the club’s board and owners being its custodians, reflecting the language used by the Trust itself in their recently published book, issued at the 2008 AGM, shortly before Gazidis’ appointment was announced.

The irony of this is that the book in part paid tribute to the contribution made by the Bracewell-Smith family to the Arsenal board over many decades, and before the new CEO could get his feet under the table, that situation had changed with Lady Nina Bracewell-Smith effectively being forced off of the board. Who knows what lies ahead, although at present Lady Nina is maintaining her stance that she has no intention to sell. However, she might not have to if she wants to make her shareholding count for something – she could regain influence by teaming up with her relatives (Richard Carr and Sarah Phipps-Bagge) and Alisher Usmanov to pose a serious threat to the existing shareholders still on the Arsenal board.

2009 looks like it will prove an interesting year in the history of the club, and ever since the decision to move stadium, there has rarely been an uneventful period at Arsenal. With so many changes in football and the wider world, Gazidis is unlikely to be overseeing a period of stability anytime soon, although fans will be pleased to hear him refer to them as supporters rather than customers, a favoured term of predecessor Keith Edelman, a man with as much feel for football as the Queen.

Gazidis has indicated he is willing to take part in the annual Q&A held for Trust members in May of this year, after the previous two seasons have seen Edelman and (in 2008 at very short notice) Ken Friar answer members’ questions. Should you wish to attend, information about how to become a member of the Trust (the supporters’ organization most concerned with the ownership of Arsenal) can be found here. Other upcoming events include a session in the Houses of Parliament with MPs who have links with Arsenal and a presentation at the stadium by members of Arsenal’s commercial department.