Southampton have been the surprise package of the 2014-15 Premier League season on the pitch and the Mail on Sunday can exclusively reveal they are one of the big winners off it, making a £31.4m profit in their latest accounts. This is the first time Saints have posted a profit since going into administration and plunging into League One in 2009, when they were saved by the late Markus Liebherr. The books for the year ending June 2014, to be published in the coming days, are firm evidence of how his daughter Katharina has is continuing a remarkable turnaround. Luke Shaw is tackled by Steven Naismith at Goodison Park during his time at Southampton . Some fans feared the worst when the club sold Luke Shaw, Adam Lallana, Dejan Lovren, Calum Chambers and Rickie Lambert last year. But they were replaced well, and at a profit, and Ronald Koeman’s aim of Champions League qualification has seemed surprisingly feasible for much of the season. In an exclusive interview with the MoS, Southampton’s chief executive Gareth Rogers says he expects further similar profits in the future, and there is zero financial pressure to sell any stars this year. ‘We do not need to sell any players in the summer,’ he says. Liverpool's Rickie Lambert celebrates after scoring a goal during the UEFA Champions League Group B match . There is increasing speculation that France midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin, 25, and England right-back Nathaniel Clyne, 23, might be lured away by giant rivals, possibly Arsenal and Manchester United. Research published this month by research specialists The Football Observatory in Switzerland showed Southampton had the most profitable academy in Europe measured by total sales value of transfers of players produced within each since 2012. The top 10 clubs: . Rank Club Sample star product . 1 Southampton Adam Lallana . 2 Lille Eden Hazard . 3 Real Sociedad Antoine Griezmann . 4 Sevilla Alberto Moreno . 5 Borussia Dortmund Mario Gotze . 6 Real Madrid Esteban Granero . 7 Barcelona Bojan Krkic . 8 Stade Rennais Yann M’Vila . 9 Montpellier Remy Cabella . 10 St-Etienne Kurt Zouma . Rogers cannot categorically say it won’t happen. He does unequivocally promise that any transfers would be made on Saints’ terms and at Saints’ prices. ‘We make decisions based on what is the best thing to do for the club at the time,’ he says. ‘But we don’t need transfer fees to fund the operating costs of the club.’ If any players did leave, any income would be fully available for replacements. Southampton’s accounts show income last season of £106m and a profit after tax of £33.4m. The main source of revenue was TV money, and that rose from £47m to £79.5m. Match day income was up slightly to £17.1m and commercial income climbed 23 per cent to £8.3m. The club’s total wage bill rose by almost a third from £47.1m to £62.95m, and has risen again this season, to be reflected in the accounts in a year’s time. The club’s total debt is £50m, owed mostly to Katharina Liebherr, who injected £20m in the financial year. That money is being used to clear an external historic loan to offshore company Vibrac, effectively a ‘payday loan’ firm to big companies. Rogers says Liebherr’s commitment to making Southampton a stronger club, and a stronger business, was evident in her allowing all of last season’s transfer receipts to be re-invested. Adam Lallana swapped St Mary's Stadium for Anfield Stadium after coming through the ranks at Southampton . Dejan Lovren also swapped St Mary's Stadium in favour of a move to Champions League outfit Liverpool . The headline income for the five major players sold was reportedly £94m but the MoS can reveal Southampton cleared ‘only’ £82m on them - after fees, sell-on payments to Lyon and Bournemouth in relation to Lovren and Lallana respectively, and Premier League levy payments of 4 per cent on each deal. Saints accounted for £31.9m of the quintet’s transfer receipts in the 2013-14 figures, but have spent the balance (£50m) plus another £12.6m on the permanent purchases of Dusan Tadic, Graziano Pelle, Fraser Forster, Shane Long, Florin Gardos, Sadio Mane and Ryan Bertrand, and on the loans for Toby Alderweireld, Eljero Elia and Filip Duricic. Southampton's Graziano Pelle celebrates scoring during their Premier League match with Manchester United . Summer arrival Dusan Tadic celebrates scoring the opening goal against Manchester United at Old Trafford . Ryan Bertrand was one of many incoming players at Southampton following a summer of changes . ‘There was an opportunity to clear the entire debt of the football club [by selling Lallana et al] and taking out money that had been put in, but Katharina didn’t do that,’ Rogers said. ‘Instead she allowed us to re-invest all of the money, either in fees or contracts. And she also put another £20m in [to clear the Vibrac debt]. ‘It would have been easy to take the money out, but this shows the commitment to the club.’ Rogers, who celebrated the first anniversary in his CEO role last week, after years as the club’s chief financial officer, says Saints’ business plan ‘shows you can be a successful club [on the pitch] and be sustainable at the same time.’
Southampton post profits for first time since plunging into League One . Soon-to-be published documents show firm evidence of  turnaround . Fans feared the worst after a summer of wholesale changes at St Mary's . Chief executive Gareth Rogers expects further similar profits in the future .