Arsenal: Ivan Gazidis the man to get behind, and I don’t mind it

Ivan Gazidis is now the driving force of Arsenal football club. He is the man in charge; he is the man to get behind. And, actually, judging by his performance in the press conference, I don’t mind that at all.

We got the first public look at the new Arsenal on Wednesday afternoon. The Arsene Wenger-era is well and truly over. The club is now in a new phase, one that is almost recognisable from its state just a few weeks and months prior.

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The main change has been the growing power of Chief Executive Ivan Gazidis. He conducted the hires of Sven Mislintat and Raul Sanllehi as the new Head of Recruitment and Head of Relations — in all but name, Sanllehi is the Sporting Director –, a trio that led the search for the new Head Coach, not manager, ultimately all reaching a unanimous verdict: Unai Emery.

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The press conference to unveil Emery was fascinating. It was managed by Gazidis and then participated in by Emery, who seemed determined to answer as many questions as possible in fairly broken English, which he should be commended for. Both were very impressive. It was Gazidis’ opening statement that pleased me most, as he slowly, surely, confidently and assertively broke down the media narrative that has portrayed this as a rather haphazardous and ambiguous process:

"“Our first interview was conducted on April 25 and our last interview was conducted on May 15, and we interviewed Unai on May 10 as part of that process. We made our recommendation to the board on May 18, and that was a unanimous recommendation by the three of us, and the formal recommendation to the board was supported by a 100-page dossier with references, analysis, videos showing their coaching in action and a great degree of background information.”"

It is clear that Gazidis is making his face more well known in this post-Wenger era. It was him who followed the Wenger announcement with a press conference on the same day a little over a month ago. It has been him who has directly managed the search for a new Head Coach. It was him who presented Emery to the media and fans here. Gazidis is now the man driving this club.

Yes, there is key input from experts in a myriad of fields, from Emery and his tactical nous on the pitch to Huss Fahmy, the legal expert hired from cycling’s Team Sky to handle player contracts. But this is very much Gazidis’ ship. He is the captain.

And, actually, I’m quite alright with that. I have always been sceptical of business running football clubs. Rarely does it go well. But Gazidis has a greater love for the game than many of the cash-rich individuals that come floating into the game. He is well-reasoned, intelligent, aware, understanding of his own weaknesses, and acknowledging of the need for a team, not a dictatorship.

Next: Arsenal: 3 things we learned from Unai Emery switch

Time will be the judge of the Gazidis era, very much like it was the Wenger era before it. But one thing is for sure, Gazidis is now the man to get behind, and I, for one, will be.