Gunners plot Emirates sell-off

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Careful: Arsene Wenger refuses to spend vasts amounts on players

Arsenal have announced an overall loss of £2.5million in their half-yearly accounts but claim their 'robust financial performance' has kept them on track.

The Gunners revealed the after-tax loss - taking into account changes in property and player trading, which are essentially one-offs - for the six months ended 30 November 2010, compared to a 2009 profit of £29.2m.

There was also a significantly reduced profit on player sales of £4m, with no big names having departed, compared to £33.9m the previous year when the coffers were boosted by the sales of of Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure to Manchester City.

The Gunners, beaten 2-1 in the Carling Cup final by Birmingham at Wembley, will be heartened, however, by football operating profits (before depreciation and player trading) of £9.3 million (£18m in 2009) and an operating profit (before depreciation and player trading) of £12.6m (£29.3m in 2009) with - as expected - a reduction in the contribution from property.

The sale of 50 apartments at Highbury Square generated revenue of £22.5m and an operating profit from property of £3.3m, while property business continues to be debt-free with all sales contributing to Group's cash position of £110.4m (£101m in 2009).

Non-executive chairman Peter Hill-Wood said: 'This is a robust performance in the current climate and is where we expected to be at this stage of the financial year and at this stage in our longer term development plans for the growth of the club.

Double blow: Arsenal were left disappointed in defeat at Wembley and the club have announced they have made a loss of £2.5million

'The club is exactly where we want to be, competing for trophies across the closing months of the season. I know that Arsene Wenger and his players will remain focused and will be appreciative of the fantastic support they get from our fans around the world.

'I also want you to know that we are proud of the fact we continue to compete at the highest level while staying true to our principles.

'We continue to operate as a self-funding club. This brings its own challenges in an increasingly competitive environment but provides the platform for a secure and positive long term future.'

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The club yesterday announced a £2.5million loss for the last six months of 2010.

This compared to a £29.2m profit in the same period of 2009 thanks to money from the redevelopment of Highbury.

Gunners chief executive Ivan Gazidis now plans to sell off pockets of land around Queensland Road at the Emirates site for business and residential purposes.

Gazidis said: "We are in a very healthy financial position.

"We will see some more one-off property opportunities that we have over the next few years.

"We are driving hard to improve our commercial performance and will see that over the next few years.

"All of the money we make goes back into the team - that's what this is all about.

"It's not about generating profit, it's about creating pride for our fans and what we represent, how we play the game and, ultimately, trophies. That's what we're all about."