CELTIC chief executive Peter Lawwell has said it is a priority for the club to be "at the top of the game in Europe" as it recorded an annual pre-tax profit of £500,000.
The £13 million sale of Virgil van Dijk to Southampton helped secure the profit in the year to June 30, compared to a loss of almost £4 million the year before.
The gain of £12.6 million from player transfers was almost double that managed in the previous year.
It helped mitigate the fact they did not qualify for the lucrative group stages of last season's UEFA Champions League. Peter Lawwell, the club's chief executive said its performances in both domestic cup competitions and in European competition were poor, as it failed to reach the domestic cup final and failed to qualify for the Champions League.
But he set his heights high in terms of the club's standing in European football.
"For a club like Celtic, operating in a market where television values have fallen significantly behind our neighbours across Europe, qualification for the Group Stages of the UEFA Champions League is of paramount importance," he said.
"The financial rewards allow for investment in the playing squad and physical assets, but moreover, the prestige of participating in the premier club competition in the world reinforces the reach and importance of the club to so many people around the world.
"Fundamentally, Celtic is a Champions League club; our infrastructure and continued investment reflect that. At a time when the direction of travel in European football is towards elite level clubs, we must remain at the forefront of developments in the game domestically and across Europe.
"Celtic should be at the top of the game in Europe and the board and I have that objective as a priority. We continue to work tirelessly on seeking to improve the football environment in which the club operates. "
He said the Youth Academy was an "important part" of their strategy towards a self-sustaining financial model.
The ultimate objective for the players and the club was to create Champions League players playing 'the Celtic Way', pointing to the introduction of Kieran Tierney as a first team regular."
He said outgoing manager Ronny Deila had provided a good base for new boss Brendan Rodgers to build on, which he did by qualifying for the group stages of the Champions League this season.
"I know that Brendan is committed to bringing success to the club and the board will support him in that effort," said Mr Lawwell. "Our objectives during this season remain success in all three domestic competitions and in the UEFA Champions League.
Iain Bankier, Celtic plc chairman said that the board continued to believe a "self-sustaining financial model" provides the necessary stability to preserve the long term future of the club and that player trading remains an "important element".
He said the optimism following Rodgers' appointment were realised this season as the team qualified for the Champions League group stages and sit on top of the Scottish Premiership table "playing attractive, attacking football".
The latest Celtic financials mark a predicted dip in financial performance in the second half of the year ended June 30.
The Scottish Premiership champions said in February that with the help of the van Dijk sale, pretax profits for the first half of the year had nearly doubled to £11.7 million.
The accounts show a two per cent rise in revenue to £52 million.
The club paid out £715,000 in compromise payments for the early termination of player contracts as well as former assistant manager John Collins and a number of support staff.
A profit of £4.7m was made on merchandising, a small increase on the previous year and its year-end cash at bank figure was £3.6m.
The previous year's pre-tax loss of almost £4m in the year ending 30 June, 2015 compared to a profit of £11m the year before.
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