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Arsenal announce £12.6m pre-tax profit

Arsenal announce a pre-tax profit of £12.6m in their latest half-yearly results.

Arsenal have announced a pre-tax profit of £12.6m in their latest half-yearly results.

Turnover for the period - the six months ending November 30, 2016 - was up from £158m to £191m on 2015, mainly due to the increase in broadcasting revenue from Sky and BT Sport.

The improved figures come despite a record summer transfer spend of £86.6m on the likes of Shkodran Mustafi, Granit Xhaka and Lucas Perez, although the club still has to fork out £42m in deferred transfer payments over the next year.

The club has also ringfenced £23.3m from its reserves - now down to £123.7m from £226.5m - for 'non-football purposes', believed to be a contingency fund in the event that the Gunners fail to qualify for next season's Champions League.

"The Premier League season has been intensely competitive across the top six positions," said Arsenal chairman Sir Chips Keswick. "At the time of writing, we sit in fourth place in the league and with thirteen games remaining, there is everything to play for.

"We have progressed to the sixth round of the FA Cup and will compete to bring home silverware in this competition for the third time in four years and what would be a record-breaking 13th FA Cup trophy.

"Everyone, including Arsene [Wenger], our players, board and staff share our fans' disappointment at our first leg result against Bayern Munich but we will approach the second leg with professionalism and a desire to reclaim pride.

"Unity has always been one of Arsenal's strengths as a club. We are very focused on producing a positive and exciting closing run and with the support of our fans, I believe together we can achieve a successful and memorable end to the season."

Due to Southampton's participation in the EFL Cup final this weekend, Arsenal are now not in action again until March 4, when they face a tough trip to Champions League-chasing rivals Liverpool.

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Neil Wilkes
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Arsenal's US majority shareholder Stan Kroenke takes his seat before the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and Aston Villa at the Emirates Stadium in London on February 23, 2013
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