Harrods owner Mohamed Al Fayed will need to dig deeper into his pocket to bankroll the club of which he is chairman after the Cottagers reported losses of �23.3m for the financial year ending 30 June 2001.

A spiralling wage bill is the club's biggest drain, with the payroll leaping by a massive �8m to �19.3m during the accounting period when Fulham were roaring to the Division One title.

The loss does not take into account the �30.5m spent by boss Jean Tigana after June, in bringing players to strenghten his squad for Premiership survival.

Fulham's debts now total �61.7m and news of the loss comes at a time when they are embarking on a �70m redevelopment of their Craven Cottage ground.

The club are also looking for a new shirt sponsor after Pizza Hut decided not to extend its deal for a second season.

On the positive side, Fulham's promotion to the top-flight provided a big increase in season-ticket sales and match reciepts.

Fulham took a big stride to securing their Premiership place for next season with a 1-0 win at Leeds.

In their first season back in the top flight, the Cottagers also reached the FA Cup semi-finals, where they were beaten by Chelsea.

A club statement said: "The season 2000/2001 was to prove a historic one for Fulham Football Club.

"New manager Jean Tigana led the team to the First Division championship, thus securing promotion to the Premier League.

"Off the field the company continued to develop the business both commercially and with regard to the facilities and infrastructure required to enable it to remain in the Premier League and continue in its vision of becoming one of England's top football clubs."