Arsenal have written off £5.5million in their accounts to cover the wages of ­transfer flop Park Ju-Young.

The South Korean arrived from Monaco on deadline day in the summer of 2011 but barely featured in Arsene Wenger’s first team.

And despite having been sent on a season’s loan to Celta Vigo, the club have put a £5.5m “impairment fee’’ in their recently published accounts, writing off the value of one player.

With Denilson and Nicklas Bendtner almost at the end of their contracts, that fee must relate to Park — and means Arsenal believe they cannot recover any of their outlay by selling the striker.

Although the move reduced Arsenal’s profits for the last financial year, the club still made £36.6m in the 12 months to May 31 and, crucially, the write off has given them extra leeway in regard to Financial Fair Play.

Arsenal are in no danger of breaching UEFA’s FFP regulations but writing off bad investments when the club are in profit makes it easier for them to cope with any financial hiccups in future, rather than having Park’s wages show in the accounts for each of the next three years.

Yet it proves Park will go down as one of Wenger’s worst buys, having scored just one goal in six appearances last season.

Despite that deal, Arsenal are still thought to be in an extremely sound financial position and could, if Wenger wanted, make two marquee signings in January.

Financial analysis conducted by the Arsenal Supporters’ Trust shows that despite a wage rise of £19m in the previous year, Arsenal have around £42.5m free cash.

The club are also in the process of renegotiating shirt and kit sponsorship agreements with Emirates and Nike, both of which expire in the summer of 2014.

With TV revenues set to rise by up to £35m per year from next season as the Premier League’s new deal kicks in, it is thought Arsenal’s annual turnover could go past the £300m mark. It is currently £243m.

And considering the future revenues coming into the club, the AST believe Wenger could sign two players at transfer fees of £25m each and give them six-figure contracts if he so wished — providing Arsenal continue to qualify for the Champions League.

Meanwhile, Lukas Podolski has revealed the secret behind his London bus journey: he struggles to find anywhere to park.

The Arsenal striker was pictured last week riding the 268 bus in north London on the way to Pizza Express and he said: “It was a story because newspapers are crazy, not only in Germany. It is not a problem to ride the bus or a taxi and to leave your car at home. I like to travel with the bus and it is easier because in London it is difficult to park.

“I’m not getting around London on the bus, only in the part of the city where I live. I wanted to take the bus and leave the car at home.”