1975–76 AEK Athens F.C. season

The 1975–76 season was the 52nd season in the existence of AEK Athens F.C. and the 17th consecutive season in the top flight of Greek football. They competed in the Alpha Ethniki, the Greek Cup and the UEFA Cup. The season began on 17 September 1975 and finished on 23 May 1976.

In the summer of 1975, Loukas Barlos, setting everything else aside, threw himself into the acquisition of Thomas Mavros. The 21-year-old striker of Panionios had impressed with his talent and he decided that it was time to move on to a major club of the league. Barlos, according to his usual approach, was more than willing to make a generous offer for the player, but Panionios was blocking the transfer. The president of AEK approached Mavros and quickly convinced him to join his club. The player pushed for his transfer, but was met with a relentless stance from Panionios. A legal dispute began, based on a finding by the brother of Mavros, who was also his lawyer, regarding their father's unsigned consent when Thomas still a minor first joined Panionios. Until the dispute was resolved, Mavros was unable to compete for either club,^[1] resembling the case of the transfer of Kostas Nestoridis in 1955. The work of František Fadrhonc in the football department was becoming effective, creating a team that combined spectacle and results.

After two consecutive years of absence from European competitions, AEK returned to the UEFA Cup. The draw brought them against the Yugoslav Vojvodina. The first match took place at Karađorđe Stadium and ended 0–0. The team of Fadrhonc confirmed their superiority and took the victory as well as the qualification with a score of 3–1. In the second round, the draw brought AEK against the Czechoslovak Inter Bratislava. In the first match at Bratislava, the Greek club faced a defeat by 2–0. In the rematch at Nea Filadelfeia the Czechoslovaks "stunned" the crowd, opening the score at the 2nd minute and the task of AEK became even more difficult. The union managed to turn the game around by scoring three goals in the second half, but unfortunately the fourth goal that would send them to the next round never came.

In the league, AEK remained undefeated for 23 consecutive games and reached seven matches before the finish, having control of their fate. Unfortunately, in the next two matches they suffered an equal number of defeats to Panathinaikos and Aris respectively. Furthermore, a defeat at the hands of PAOK that followed, resulted in their second place finish for a second season in a row, 5 points from the top, handing over the title to PAOK. The offensive playing style that Fadrhonc implemented in the team, resulted in Georgios Dedes finishing as the league's top scorer with 15 goals, while in the top 10 were also Walter Wagner and Mimis Papaioannou with 11 goals each.

In the Cup, AEK eliminated Agios Dimitrios by 7–0 in the first round, Anagennisi Karditsa by 2–1 in the second round, Olympiakos Neon Liosion by 6–0 in the third round at home. In the quarter-finals, they faced Fostiras at Tavros Stadium and won by 0–1. In the semi-finals, they were drawn against Olympiacos at home and despite taking the lead early on, they eventually lost the match by 3–2 and therefore were eliminated from the tournament.^[2]

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 23 May 1976, 23:59 UTC+3.

Expenditure: ₯0

Income: ₯0

Net Total: ₯0

As of 23 May 1976

As of 23 May 1976

Numbers in superscript represent the goals that the player scored.

The list is sorted by competition order when total clean sheets are equal 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.

As of 23 May 1976

As of 23 May 1976

• AEK Athens F.C. Official Website
• A.E.K. FC Database