During the 2007–08 season, Barnsley F.C. competed in the Championship, where they finished 18th, and also competed in the FA Cup and League Cup, where they were eliminated in the semi-final and second round respectively.
First-team squad
Squad at end of season
Left club during season
Preparation for 2007/08
At the end of the season, Barnsley announced the release of first team members Antony Kay, Neil Austin, and Marc Richards. Strikers Daniel Nardiello and Paul Hayes then left to join QPR and Scunthorpe United, respectively. Paul Heckingbottom also agreed a loan move to his former club Bradford City, until the end of January. Manager Simon Davey was quite prolific in the summer transfer window, bringing in no less than fourteen new players and spending around £1 million, the majority of this on three strikers.
New players
Strikers: Kayode Odejayi (Cheltenham), Miguel Mostto (Cienciano), Kim Christensen (Odense Boldklub)
Midfield: Anderson Silva de Franca (On loan from Everton), Jamal Campbell-Ryce (Southend United), Dominik Werling (Sakaryaspor), Andy Johnson (Leicester City), Rohan Ricketts (Wolverhampton Wanderers)
Defenders: Rob Kozluk (Sheffield United), Dennis Souza (RAEC Mons), Lewin Nyatanga (on loan from Derby), Stephen Foster (Burnley), Marciano Bruma (Sparta Rotterdam)
Goalkeeper: Heinz Muller (Lillestrøm S.K.)
2007–08 season
League table
Overview
With the departure of six first team players (Daniel Nardiello, Paul Hayes, Antony Kay, Paul Heckingbottom, Neil Austin and Marc Richards), Simon Davey dipped heavily into the summer transfer market and ultimately brought in fourteen new players, the majority of whom were foreign. The most successful of these signings included goalkeeper Heinz Muller, midfielders Anderson and Jamal Campbell-Ryce, and a new defensive line-up made up of Rob Kozluk, Dennis Souza, Stephen Foster and Lewin Nyatanga (who returned on an extended loan spell after becoming a fan favourite).
Barnsley had a very positive start to the season, surpassing expectations and finding themselves in the top six of the Football League Championship with ten games played. Most of the summer signings found their way into the squad early on, making it quite common for there only to be two or three players in the starting eleven who were with the club in the previous season. Top scorer Brian Howard was rumored to have attracted Premiership interest along with new signings Heinz Muller, Dennis Souza and even manager Simon Davey. The team managed to maintain a decent level of consistency, remaining in the top half of the table throughout the first half of the season. Derby striker Jon Macken arrived on loan in November, and scored his first three goals for the club in his last two matches before being recalled by Derby at the end of December along with Lewin Nyatanga. Barnsley's form finally began to stutter through December and January, when they went for eight league games without a victory and dropped to 16th in the table. They did, however, beat both Blackpool and Southend in the FA Cup to secure passage to the last sixteen.
The first new signing of the January window was Spanish midfielder Diego León, followed by a short-term loan signing for Miguel Tininho and a controversial loan deal for ex-reds striker Daniel Nardiello (who had turned down a contract offer to leave the club for QPR the previous summer). Shortly before the transfer window closed, Davey signed previously-loaned players Jon Macken from Derby County and Anderson from Everton (each for an undisclosed six-figure fee), as well as securing yet another loan spell for Lewin Nyatanga, with a fee agreed for a permanent summer switch. Outgoing from the club was reserve goalkeeper Nick Colgan to Championship rivals Ipswich, so an injury to first-choice keeper Heinz Muller forced a late loan deal for goalkeeper Tony Warner on a month's loan from Fulham. Anderson also suffered an injury in late February which would keep him out for up to seven months.