CELTIC Football Club has never been in a better position on or off the field, it was claimed yesterday as the club announced a second consecutive profitable year.

CELTIC Football Club has never been in a better position on or off the field, it was claimed yesterday as the club announced a second consecutive profitable year.

A pre-tax profit of £4.44m for the year until June may pale beside the 2007 figure of £15.04m but more than £1.5m has been slashed from the bank debt and Peter Lawwell, chief executive of the club, was "absolutely delighted" at the figures as the club prepares for a tilt at a fourth consecutive Clydesdale Bank Premier League title.

"This proves we have the fundamentals right and that our business model is working," said Lawwell. He accepted there had been difficulties as evidenced by some of the financial highlights.

Group revenue reduced by 3% to £72.95m from £75.24m last year, operating expenses increased by 8.1% to £ 64.09m from £59.28m, profit from trading before asset transactions and exceptional operating expenses was reduced to £8.86m from last year's figure of £15.95m, and there were exceptional operating expenses of £3.19m up from £2.88m.

Lawwell explained the dip in merchandising profits was merely "a blip" as only one strip had been launched in the financial year. He indicated, too, that the new commercial set-up at Parkhead hoped to maximise a strong brand name overseas.

Operating costs were also affected by the opening of the training facilities at Lennoxtown. However, the chief executive believes this is the way forward for the club as "we simply cannot compete with transfer fees and the wages of the big five nations". The Celtic strategy is to try and identify talent at a young age, at home or abroad, and bring them on through improved coaching and sports science facilities.

There was also an impact in the amount spent on players' wages, though Lawwell said: "There is a commitment on us to re-invest in the club and that means signing players and keeping the best at the club." That was a nod of the head to the improved contracts signed by Artur Boruc, Aiden McGeady, Scott McDonald and Shunsuke Nakamura recently. More than £3m was also spent on paying off contracts, an increasingly familiar scenario for clubs nowadays.

"There is a stability at the club," said Lawwell. "Indeed, we feel Celtic have never been in a better position off the field or on it."

This sentiment was reinforced by Dr John Reid, the club chairman, who said: "Our financial results for the year demonstrate strong underlying performance on and off the pitch, and the resilience that is needed to deliver continuing success in domestic and European football."

He accepted the reality that Celtic can not compete with the biggest clubs in the transfer market but emphasised the role that scouting and a refined coaching set-up could play. He added: "We continue to look for opportunities to strengthen our squad." He paid sombre tribute to the difficulties of a season year that claimed three former Celtic players in John Cushley, Phil O'Donnell and Tommy Burns. But he maintained the club was in a solid position to push forward.

There has been speculation that the chief executive might decide to move on after a draining spell at the hub of the club. However, Lawwell was emphatic last night: "I have no such plans. This club has a huge emotional hold over me and that helps me on the longer days."