In the summer of 2007, AEK strengthened their roster with many players with the more resounding transfer being that of Rivaldo, while also Blanco, Macho, Arruabarrena and Nsaliwa among others, joined the team, as the Spanish Serra Ferrer remained at their bench. The club sold 25,495 season tickets.
The draw of the third qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League brought the Spanish Sevilla against AEK. AEK had a very positive presence at Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán Stadium, but lost with two goals in the second half. The rematch of Athens was overshadowed by the tragedy of the death of the Sevilla player, Antonio Puerta.[1] UEFA postponed the game, ordering it to be played a week later. AEK welcomed Sevilla on the evening of September 3, lined up with full offensive orientations. They put a lot of pressure on Sevilla in the first twenty minutes, but a penalty by Júlio César put an end to any chances of qualification for AEK, who finally went on to the UEFA Cup with a heavy 1–4.
In the first round of the UEFA Cup, AEK were drawn with the Austrian Salzburg, which had now moved to the Red Bull group. In Athens, AEK took the lead early in the match and in the second half, AEK doubled the lead the goal-poem from Rivaldo with a mixture of volley and scissor-kick. Towards the end, AEK scored a third goal and gained a huge lead for the rematch. At the Red Bull Arena, Salzburg's goal put AEK in danger and by defending properly, kept the difference from the first leg and thus the qualification to the group stage. There they met Villarreal, Fiorentina, Mladá Boleslav and Elfsborg, where with 1 win, 2 draws and 1 loss they finished third and advanced to the round of 32.
In the league, the yellow-blacks started the year strong by winning the first 6 matches and it took until the 7th match to have their first loss. They were also defeated by Asteras Tripolis in a match after which the vice-president, Nikos Koulis stated that AEK had the right to object to the illegal participation of the footballer of Asteras, Sokratis Fyntanidis,[2] but such a move did not suit the mentality of AEK and so the matter did not proceed. Something that AEK would to find in front of them later in the season. Then 2 consecutive defeats in the middle of the season, left AEK well behind in the league race. On 3 February, Olympiacos lost to Apollon Kalamarias with 1–0. After the match, the red and whites found out that the player of Apollon, Roman Wallner had an irregular participation because he had already played in the same season in 2 teams and therefore did not have the right to play in a third one. The HFF nevertheless issued a report to the footballer. Olympiacos, who did not share the same morals as AEK, filed an objection and asked to win the match "on paper". The decision that came out ordered the replay of the match, which did not satisfy the Piraeus who appealed the decision.
In the Cup, AEK eliminated Fostiras of Daniel Batista in the round of 32. In the next phase, AEK faced Skoda Xanthi in a knockout game where, playing bad football, were eliminated with a 2–0 defeat. The people of the team disapproved of players, coach and management and 3 days later Serra Ferrer was sacked.[3] The position of coach was taken over by his assistant and former footballer of the team, Nikos Kostenoglou.
AEK recovered competitively by making some victories, while Olympiacos, who rested on their high difference started throwing away points, but did not show that their top spot was seriously threatened. While the Wallner case was unfolding, the championship was coming to an end with Olympiacos losing their concentration and AEK covering up the difference. On 30 March, AEK beat Olympiacos with an emphatic 4–0 and got the upper hand on claiming the league. However, the decision of the Appeals Committee of the HFF ruled the game on paper in favor of Olympiacos and with their victory against AEL on the 27th matchday secured the championship. Apollon Kalamarias finally appealed to CAS, which considered itself incompetent, did not proceed with the examination of the case and the standings were validated since the championship had already ended.[4] In the penultimate matchday against PAOK in Toumba Stadium, AEK played outstanding football and won easily by 0–4. In the last match against Asteras Tripolis, AEK honored Akis Zikos for his contribution to the club, while there was tension in the stands as the crowd wanted to honor the "champion" of that season, AEK who, however, would not lift the cup that afternoon.[5] In Piraeus, however, they celebrated as if nothing had happened. Eventually the regular season ended with a message on the stadium matrix reading "Proud of AEK 2007–2008".
In the round of 32 of the UEFA Cup, AEK were drawn with the Spanish Getafe. Kostenoglou made a lot of changes in faces and the formation, but the team did not seem to respond. Getafe took the lead three minutes before the end and AEK reacted, closing the Spaniards in their area, reaching the equalizer with a rare beauty back-heel shot of Blanco. The second leg at the Coliseum Alfonso Pérez was one of AEK's worst nights in European cups. Getafe chased the qualification and easily won with 3–0. AEK was unacceptable, passionless and indifferent and ended the month with exclusion from the European cups.
After the team were deprived of winning the league and without administrative reactions and collisions within the club, AEK went down to the play-offs under the shadow of the Wallner case. After the easy victory in the first game against Panionios, bad appearances followed, lackluster and with obvious internal problems in the team's performance. As it turned out later, many boardmembers and footballers did not even want to participate in the play-offs. AEK suffered great defeats at Leoforos Alexandras Stadium and Kleanthis Vikelidis Stadium and with the last two matches being completely indifferent, the team finished third, where they should have been crowned champions.[6]
NOTE: The players are the ones that have been announced by the AEK Athens' press release. No edits should be made unless a player arrival or exit is announced. Updated 14 May 2008, 23:59 UTC+3.
Source: Super League Greece Rules for classification: 1st points; 2nd head-to-head points; 3rd head-to-head goal difference; 4th decision match. According to the official Super League playoff regulation, the position after the playoffs replaces the regular season position. (C) Champions Notes:
^The match of Apollon Kalamarias against Olympiacos, originally ended 1–0 to the home side, but later was awarded to Olympiacos 0–3 by the Greek sports court giving Olympiacos the three points, on the basis that the home side fielded an ineligible player (Roman Wallner). Apollon were deducted by one point.
Note: AEK had the right to file an objection for the illegal participation of Fyntanidis in the game, however they decided not to so and let the match be decided in the pitch.[2]
The list is sorted by competition order when total clean sheets are equal, then by shirt number and then alphabetically by surname. Clean sheets in games where both goalkeepers participated are awarded to the goalkeeper who started the game. Goalkeepers with no appearances are not included.
