This resulted in an operating loss before player trading of £0.5m.

Investment in the squad saw operating expenses increase from £73.4m in 2009, with a profit of £19m from player sales - raised primarily by Joleon Lescott's move to Manchester City - used to bring in the likes of Sylvain Distin, John Heitinga and Diniyar Bilyaletdinov.

The loan signing of Landon Donovan and renegotiated contracts for Louis Saha, Tim Howard, Jack Rodwell, Joseph Yobo and Phil Jagielka also made an impact as manager David Moyes guided the 2009 FA Cup finalists to an eighth-placed finish in the Barclays Premier League.

Kenwright told www.evertonfc.com: "In modern football, the difference between success and failure can be wafer-thin.

"Yes, those clubs fortunate enough to boast a rich and generous benefactor undoubtedly have a clearly defined advantage but the outcome of crucial matches are quite often decided not by the size of the bank balance but more by skill, good fortune or the whim of a referee.

"From a financial perspective, the year was one which was underpinned by sensible business management which enabled us to continue to do everything within our collective power to help the manager in his concerted efforts to build a squad which would challenge the top four.

"Turnover for the year of £79.1m represented a decrease of £0.6m on the previous year, £79.7m, a figure which was boosted by our progress through to the FA Cup final.

"Irrespective of their standing within the various leagues, clubs will invariably be judged on two things - performance and level of support.

"Our average attendance for Premier League games at Goodison Park rose to almost 37,000 during the course of the last campaign, a statistic which delights me but does not surprise me simply because we are fortunate enough to boast the most loyal and knowledgeable crowd in British football."

Everton's average attendance increased from 35,667 to 36,729 and season ticket numbers went up from 23,717 to 25,671, a rise of 8%, generating £19.2m.

Broadcast revenue increased to £50.2m due to the club's share of the centralised revenue deal from the Europa League, although domestic broadcast revenue was down. This was due to 13 domestic games being broadcast live in contrast to 17 in the previous season.

Commercial, sponsorship and merchandising revenue increased to £7.1m.