Newcastle 22/23 — Howe's Top Four Toon: Full Squad & Ratings

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

Newcastle 2022/23 — Season Story

Newcastle United's 2022/23 season ended a 20-year wait for the Champions League and announced the club's Saudi-backed project as a genuine force: fourth place in the Premier League, the meanest defence in the division, and a first cup final in 24 years. Eddie Howe's team did it with a style that was the opposite of glamorous — organised, physical, relentless — and the city loved every minute of it.

The previous season had been a relegation struggle that ended with Howe arriving in November 2021 and the club finishing 11th after a stunning second half. The summer of 2022 brought smart recruitment — Nick Pope from Burnley, Sven Botman from Lille, Matt Targett on a permanent deal, and later Alexander Isak for a club-record fee — and the transformation was immediate.

Newcastle lost just four league games all season, conceded only 33 goals — the fewest in the division — and built their campaign on a home record that saw them beat Tottenham, Chelsea and Manchester United at St James' Park. The 1-0 win over Manchester United in April, secured by a Joe Willock goal, was the moment the top-four dream became real.

There was heartbreak in the Carabao Cup final, a 2-0 defeat to Manchester United at Wembley in February, but the league form carried them home: fourth place with 71 points, eleven clear of fifth-placed Liverpool, and a Champions League return for the first time since 2003. The 2022/23 squad is rated 79.2 OVR in the 38-0 dataset — a team that proved you do not need to spend like the elite to compete with them.

The Howe Effect

Eddie Howe inherited a squad that had been fighting relegation and transformed it without a revolution. His methods were simple and effective: intense fitness work, clear pressing triggers, and a belief in every player that previous managers had not provided. The press became Newcastle's identity — the team that ran more and pressed higher than anyone in the league.

The recruitment matched the coach. Nick Pope, signed for 10 million pounds, kept 14 clean sheets and was the best value goalkeeper in the league. Sven Botman, 22, formed an immediate partnership with Fabian Schar. And Bruno Guimaraes, signed the previous January, became the heartbeat of midfield — the player everything flowed through, and the man the fans sang about every week.

The Meanest Defence in the League

The statistic that defined the season: 33 goals conceded in 38 games — the fewest of any Premier League team, ahead of Manchester City's 33 and Arsenal's 43. The back line of Pope, Trippier, Schar, Botman and Burn gave Newcastle a platform that even the title challengers could not match, and the team lost just four times all season, fewer than every side except City and Arsenal.

Kieran Trippier was the leader of the unit — the England international whose delivery from set pieces and defensive organisation made him the club's most important signing. The away record told the story: Newcastle won at Spurs, Wolves and Everton in the run-in, and the 1-1 at Arsenal in January, when Trippier's free kick earned a point, was the moment the top four stopped looking like a fantasy.

The Cup Final and the Top-Four Run-In

The Carabao Cup final in February was Newcastle's first since 1999, and Wembley was a sea of black and white. United were the better side on the day and won 2-0, but the occasion — and the following week's league form, which never dipped — showed the club had changed. Newcastle lost only twice in the league after the final, winning six of their last eight.

The decisive week came in April: wins over Brentford and Everton, then the 1-0 over Manchester United that put Newcastle four points clear of fifth with a game in hand. The final-day draw with Chelsea confirmed fourth place, and the scenes at St James' Park — a lap of honour, players holding the Champions League banner — ended 20 years of waiting.

Key Players & Ratings

Kieran Trippier (85 OVR) is the squad's best player and its leader — an elite right-back whose set-piece delivery and organisation underpinned everything. Bruno Guimaraes (84) is the midfield heartbeat, Alexander Isak (83) the record-signing striker who scored 10 league goals, and Nick Pope (82) and Sven Botman (82) the defensive bedrock.

The squad average of 79.2 OVR sits just below the 80.7 pool average, and the ratings reflect the team's collective strength rather than individual brilliance: no superstars, but quality throughout. Callum Wilson (81), Fabian Schar (81), Miguel Almiron (80) and Allan Saint-Maximin (79) all contribute, and the squad is one of the most balanced value landings in the draft.

Full 18-Man Squad

Best XI — Newcastle 2022/23

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

• GK Nick Pope 82 OVR
• RB Kieran Trippier 85 OVR
• RCB Fabian Schär 81 OVR
• LCB Sven Botman 82 OVR
• LB Dan Burn 78 OVR
• CM Bruno Guimarães 84 OVR
• CM Joelinton 79 OVR
• RW Miguel Almirón 80 OVR
• LW Allan Saint-Maximin 79 OVR
• ST Alexander Isak 83 OVR
• ST Callum Wilson 81 OVR

Drafting This Squad in 38-0

This is a value squad where the top names are genuinely useful: Trippier is an elite right-back, Bruno Guimaraes a top-tier central midfielder, Isak a good striker, and Pope a solid goalkeeper. The squad's strength is its balance — there is no single game-changing star, but every position has a decent option.

In Legend mode, the hierarchy is: Trippier (85), Guimaraes (84), Isak (83), then Pope and Botman (82), Wilson and Schar (81). The 72-79 tail is thin — avoid it unless you have no choice — and take one of the top five to make the most of this landing.

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