Arsenal today announced record pre tax profits of £56 million, an increase of £10.5 million on the previous year. Supporters will be pleased that the club continues to be run in a sufficiently prudent manner for its long term future to remain secure.

Unlike many of their rivals Arsenal will not need to make any adjustments in order to comply with the UEFA Financial Fair Play Rules which will soon prevent clubs from persistently being run at a substantial loss.

The news was announced with Chief Executive, Ivan Gazidis, proclaiming triumphantly that,

“The competitive landscape makes it ever tougher to achieve success on the field and standing still is simply not, and never has been, an option for the Club. It is important that we continue to develop a vibrant and robust business with sufficient revenues to sustain success. The Group has made good progress over the last year and I am excited by the opportunities which we have in front of us.”

The problem is that, while Arsenal might be moving forwards financially, on the pitch they have been at a virtual standstill for the last five years. The club has consistently finished in the top four of the Premiership and reached the latter stages of the Champions League but does not appear to be coming any closer to winning either of these coveted competitions.

A figure which immediately stands out from Arsenal’s recently released 2010 accounts is the one relating to transfer activity. Arsenal have made a profit of £13.6 million, an increase of almost £10 million on the previous year. This effectively means that Arsenal’s playing squad has been depleted by the loss of £13.6 million worth of talent.

Arsenal last won the Premier League in 2004. Since then the most expensive player Arsene Wenger has signed is Andrey Arshavin who cost approximately £15 million. The two teams that have actually won the Premiership in that period are Chelsea and Manchester United. Since losing out to Arsenal in 2004 they have both signed numerous players costing more than Arshavin.

Chelsea have brought in Andrei Shevchenko (£30 million), (Didier Drogba (£24 million), Michael Essien (£26 million), Shaun Wright Phillips (£21 million), Ricardo Carvalho (£20 million), Yuri Zhirkov (£18million), Ramires (£17 million) and Jose Bosingwa (£16.3 million).

Manchester United have signed Dimitar Berbatov (£30.75 million), Wayne Rooney (£27 million), Anderson (£17 million), Nani (£17 million), Owen Hargreaves (£17 million) and Antonio Valencia (£16 million).

Wenger deserves a lot of credit for ensuring his team remained competitive with a combination of astute acquisitions and carefully nurtured youngsters. However he has clearly been hampered by his inability to sign established, experienced players in the transfer market.

Players like Berbatov, Rooney, Essien and Drogba come at a premium and it is one which in recent years Arsenal have been either unable or unwilling to pay. If a player or two of this calibre could have been introduced to a first team already featuring the likes of Cesc Fabregas and Thierry Henry then there is no doubt in my mind that Arsenal would have won the Premiership and probably the Champions League in the last five years.

Instead Arsenal have had to settle for an FA Cup win in 2005, a Champions League Final appearance in 2006 and have not managed to finish in the top two in the Premier League since the 2004/05 season.

In these circumstances Arsenal fans might be a little dismayed to discover that, despite making a considerable profit, the club is still unwilling to invest significant funds in order to improve the first team.

This point was perfectly demonstrated when Arsene Wenger decided he needed a new keeper during the last transfer window. Arsenal’s goalkeeping situation has been far from satisfactory in recent seasons and it was no surprise that Wenger should look to the market for a replacement for the erratic Manuel Almunia.

What must rank as a major surprise, particularly given the figures which have just been released, is that Wenger’s chosen target should have been 38 year old Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer. The Australian has never been ranked as one of the top goalkeepers in the world and was not attracting interest from other clubs. Yet despite Arsenal’s new found wealth Wenger was unable to meet Fulham’s asking price for Schwarzer, believed to be in the region of £4 million.

If this is the limit of the club’s ambitions in the transfer market it is difficult to see how Arsenal are ever going to close the gap on Chelsea and Manchester United. Had Wenger been given £56 million to spend over the summer he would undoubtedly have a side as good as any in club football. Instead Arsenal have a team which possesses limitless potential but is still severely lacking in experience.

Arsenal’s financial future may be secure but football fans do not dream of security, they crave success. The current administration might have provided plenty of security but fans are entitled to feel the club should be using its £56 million profit to try and buy a little more success.