David Dein is set to push for a return to Arsenal.

The Guardian says Dein will press for reinstatement to Arsenal's board after the Uzbek billionaire Alisher Usmanov raised his stake in the club to 21% on Monday. Having been ousted from the board in April, Dein became chairman of Usmanov's Red and White Holdings last month when he sold it his 14.58% stake. Having acquired the shares belonging to Birol Nadir and Lansdowne Partners, a hedge fund, Usmanov intends to continue to buy shares.

According to one source close to Usmanov's company, it intends to manoeuvre for a position on the board. That is a bold ambition since the "irreconcilable differences" that led to Dein's departure still block his path back - the chairman, Peter Hill-Wood, recently said he would not meet Dein after "25 years of listening to him".

That might explain why Red and White yesterday played down the campaign for a say in Arsenal's future. A spokesman said: "The question of board representation has not been raised or discussed. It is a matter for the board, not us."