Man Utd 22/23 — Ten Hag's League Cup Winners: Full Squad & Ratings

Man Utd 2022/23 season — all 18 players rated, best XI, and how to draft them in 38-0.

Man Utd 2022/23 — Season Story

Manchester United's 2022/23 season was the rebuild made real: Erik ten Hag's first season ended with a third-place league finish and the Carabao Cup — the club's first trophy in six years — and for the first time since Sir Alex Ferguson retired, the direction of travel felt genuinely upward.

The season had a disastrous opening — two defeats in the first two games, including a 4-0 humiliation at Brentford — and Ten Hag responded with running punishment and a clear message: standards were back. United then lost only three of their next 31 league games, and by the spring were chasing a quadruple of their own before a punishing fixture schedule took its toll.

The Carabao Cup final in February was the turning point: a 2-0 win over Newcastle at Wembley, with Casemiro heading United ahead and Marcus Rashford finishing the move of the match. The trophy ended a six-year drought — the club's longest since the 1970s — and the celebrations, led by a delirious Ten Hag, released years of frustration.

The league campaign finished strongly: third place and 75 points, with 15 wins in the final 19 games. Rashford enjoyed the best season of his career with 30 goals in all competitions; Casemiro transformed the midfield; and Bruno Fernandes, the captain-in-waiting, produced his most complete season. The 2022/23 squad is the bridge between the post-Ferguson drift and the Ten Hag era, rated 81.1 OVR in the 38-0 dataset.

The Casemiro Effect

The signing of Casemiro from Real Madrid for 70 million pounds was the moment the rebuild became credible. United had lacked a world-class holding midfielder since the Ferguson era; Casemiro brought not just his ball-winning and passing range, but a winner's mentality that lifted everyone around him. His headed goal in the Carabao Cup final was his 13th goal involvement of the season — extraordinary numbers for a defensive midfielder.

His partnership with Christian Eriksen and Bruno Fernandes gave United something they had not had for a decade: control in midfield. Casemiro's reading of the game meant United could press higher, and his leadership meant the team stopped collapsing in big moments. In the 38-0 dataset he is rated 87 OVR, one of the best defensive midfielders in the pool.

Rashford's Resurgence

Marcus Rashford came into the season off the back of the worst campaign of his career and finished it as the most in-form English forward in Europe: 30 goals in all competitions, his best-ever return, including 17 in the league. Ten Hag rebuilt his confidence, gave him a clear role on the left wing, and the goals flowed — 16 in the 18 games after the World Cup.

The relationship was the story of the season: Ten Hag demanding more, Rashford delivering, and the club's decision to hand him a new contract reflecting his rebirth. In the 38-0 dataset he is rated 85 OVR — a top-tier left winger, and the highest-rated forward in this squad.

The Wembley Statement

The Carabao Cup final against Newcastle was United's first final in six years, and the performance was the clearest evidence that the Ten Hag project was real. Casemiro's header from Luke Shaw's free kick settled the nerves; Rashford's second, a sweeping counter-attack finished first time, killed the game. The 2-0 win was controlled, professional and emphatic.

Six years is a lifetime at Manchester United. The trophy ended the longest drought in the club's modern history, gave the players their first medal, and changed the mood of a fanbase that had spent the decade watching rivals celebrate. Ten Hag lifted the cup in front of the United end and talked of more to come — the FA Cup final would follow in May, where United lost to Manchester City, but the direction was unmistakable.

Key Players & Ratings

Bruno Fernandes (88 OVR) is the highest-rated player in the squad — the captain, the creator and the goal threat all in one. Casemiro (87) is the midfield anchor, Marcus Rashford (85) the goalscorer, and David de Gea (84) and Raphael Varane (84) the defensive spine. Lisandro Martinez (84), Luke Shaw (82) and Christian Eriksen (82) complete a strong core.

The squad average of 81.1 OVR sits just above the 80.7 pool average, and the shape is interesting: genuinely elite at the top — Fernandes, Casemiro, Rashford — with a solid but unspectacular supporting cast. The attack is top-heavy, with Antony (80), Jadon Sancho (79) and Anthony Martial (79) rated below the headline names.

Full 18-Man Squad

Best XI — Man Utd 2022/23

The highest-rated eleven available from this squad in 38-0:

• GK David de Gea 84 OVR
• RB Diogo Dalot 80 OVR
• RCB Raphaël Varane 84 OVR
• LCB Lisandro Martínez 84 OVR
• LB Luke Shaw 82 OVR
• CDM Casemiro 87 OVR
• CM Christian Eriksen 82 OVR
• CM Fred 80 OVR
• CAM Bruno Fernandes 88 OVR
• RW Antony 80 OVR
• LW Marcus Rashford 85 OVR

Drafting This Squad in 38-0

This is a squad where the top three are the draft. Fernandes is a top-tier attacking midfielder who creates and scores; Casemiro is an elite defensive midfielder; Rashford is a game-changing left winger. Take whichever your XI needs most — the rest of the squad is good but replaceable.

In Legend mode, the hierarchy is easy to memorise because it is so sharp: Fernandes (88), Casemiro (87), Rashford (85), then de Gea, Varane and Martinez (84). The gap between that top six and the 77-80 middle tier is huge, so never settle for a mid-tier pick while a top name is available.

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