The Rossoneri CEO has claimed that the club's huge deficit would have been almost halved had they played in the Champions League this season

AC Milan CEO Adriano Galliani has defended the club’s financial management after announcing that the club lost €91.3 million in 2014.

The Rossoneri missed out on the Champions League in 2014-15 after finishing in eighth place in the previous Serie A campaign. The poor return on the field led to the sackings of Massimiliano Allegri last January and his successor Clarence Seedorf at the end of the season.

Galliani has told the board of directors that the loss in normal for a club which has had to adapt to reduced income.

“The balance sheet for 2014 conforms to the norms correctly,” he explained. “The loss is of €91.3m but with the usual criteria normally present the loss would have been only €46.6m.

“Two events contributed to the higher loss, the lack of Champions League football and the different fiscal accounts of Fininvest with Milan.

“As of 2013, Milan have been alone and cannot count on the tax breaks derived from the controlling company. Even the salary of the former coach until 2016 has been entirely absorbed in the 2014 budget.”

As the club’s owners, Fininvest has agreed to stump up for the loss, and Galliani has praised president Silvio Berlusconi for his contribution to Milan despite the recent downturn on the field and in the finances.

“Fininvest covers all the losses, and it covers them for the small shareholders as well,” he added.

“No one has ever done more for Milan than Fininvest and I know that when you are winning you think you can always win, but in football you will eventually stop winning and when you lose you will eventually stop losing.

“Fininvest has the right to manage the club and not co-manage the club with the stakeholders. If ever the club were sold, which is not at all certain, the Silvio Berlusconi era will remain the most successful era ever of this club.”

The club is currently the subject of fervent takeover speculation, with Thai entrepreneur Bee Taechaubol having visited the city between Sunday and Tuesday in the hope of closing a deal to buy a majority share in the Rossoneri.

Such a takeover would end 29 years of Berlusconi rule at Milan.