Arsenal fans may have had a bit more to shout about int the transfer market over the last year or so, but at the end of each window, us fans and the football media are still left scratching our heads as to why Arsene Wenger did not sign, for instance, a striker or a defensive midfielder.
And it is not because the club cannot afford it. That is made more than clear by the new financial figures released on Arsenal.com today. The figures show that the Gunners are in a very healthy financial position and that our turnover went up by £21 million to just over £301 million, up to the end of May 2014.
The wage bill also went up by about £12 million, although the wages as a percentage of turnover actually went down a little. And the new policy of not selling our best player every year is shown in the fact that Arsenal made just £7m on that compared to £47m the previous year.
The standout figure for me, though, is the cash balance. With about £120 million in the bank at the start of the financial year, most fans would expect some of that to go to boost the transfer kitty, but instead of that, the club has increased it’s cash balance to £173 million. What the hell are they saving it for? That does not even include the money held in reserve to deal with debt servicing.
If you believe the Arsenal transfer rumours, Wenger was after a defensive midfielder and perhaps another centre back this summer. There were reports that we had a few bids for William Carvalho turned down as well, so can anyone explain how we failed to get the players we needed when there is nearly £200 million gathering dust in the bank? Please enlighten me Gooners…