Documents just filed at Companies House covering the 12 months to the end of May 2015 reveal the woes at the club in the wake of owner Randy Lerner's decision to sell up.

The club remains on the market but, when the documents were compiled, "no active discussions were taking place".

Villa finished 17th in the Premier League in 2014/15, "its worst performance since the creation of the league in 1992", said the report, although the club did reach the FA Cup final under manager Tim Sherwood, who replaced Paul Lambert in February last year.

Mr Sherwood was replaced by current manager Remi Garde in November.

The losses for the club's parent company, Reform Aquisitions, hit £27.3 million compared to £3.9 million the previous year.

Turnover, including £2.5m earned in player transactions, was £115.7m – £1 million less than the previous year.

Villa saw gate receipts for matches rise by £1 million to £13.8m, but TV broadcasting income fell to £71.4m from £72.7m the previous season. Sponsorship income was up, however, to £10.9m from £9.4m. But commercial income from merchandising, royalties and conferences at Villa Park fell £2.7m to £19.4m.

Villa's operating expenses rose by more than £17m to £139.4m, including a £19.7m cost from player transactions. The biggest item was staff costs at the club, including player wages, which rose to £83.8m from £69.3m the year before.

Advertising

Off the pitch, Paul Faulkner resigned as chief executive of Aston Villa in July 2014, later becoming chief executive of the Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce. He was replaced by Tom Fox in November 2014 with a mandate to develop the club's commercial activities and build resilience into its football organisation.

Investment in these areas started with the appointment of the new manager, a chief commercial officer and the restructuring of the senior management team.

Steve Hollis, the former Midlands chairman of accountants KPMG, has been appointed chairman and Mervyn King, the Wolverhampton-educated former governor of the Bank of England and a lifelong Villa fan, has been appointed a director.

Meanwhile, a miserable season currently sees Villa propping up the league in 20th place, having won just three of their 29 games.