As we race towards the end of the year – and the conclusion of a tumultuous decade for the Magpies – we have picked the Newcastle United XI of the last ten years.
It is a period that has seen a relegation, a Europa League campaign and plenty of unrest on Tyneside but as well as the problems there have been some fine players on show at St James’ Park.
Newcastle’s flirtation with France means there’s a Gallic flavour to the XI and the rest of the squad but there were plenty of contentious calls in there too. Here is our XI.
Goalkeeper
While it has not quite been the vintage era that saw Shay Given and Steve Harper battling for supremacy, the 2010s have seen another decent crop of goalkeepers at St James’ Park. Rob Elliot and Karl Darlow have both delivered outstanding performances in this era – Elliot’s incredible display at Bournemouth and Darlow’s at Nottingham Forest stand comparison with any stopper – but this was a straight shoot out between Tim Krul and the current incumbent Martin Dubravka.
Krul came of age in this decade and was a man in form as Alan Pardew’s Magpies earned a fifth-placed finish. His incredible performance at Tottenham in the season that followed may be one of the best in a Newcastle shirt as he pulled off 14 saves to deny Spurs. Dubravka has made an immediate impact at St James’ Park, delivering one of the club’s best debuts as Newcastle beat Manchester United.
Despite the occasional slip up, he’s proved an outstanding goalkeeper: technically efficient, brave and a natural leader.
But for time served, Krul just edges out Dubravka.
Defenders
We’ve gone for a 4-4-2 so we needed a right-back and Mathieu Debuchy is the man who gets the nod in a very close-run race. Daryl Janmaat was every bit as good but his exit still rankles, while Danny Simpson was reliable and perhaps unfairly maligned. The fact he went on to win a Premier League title says much. Current occupant DeAndre Yedlin isn’t far away from this accolade too, but his best days are hopefully in front of him.
United have had some outstanding centre-backs in this period – most of them recruited and trained by Rafa Benitez in his years in charge. But Fabricio Coloccini was brilliant in his pomp: as skilful a defender as Newcastle have had for some time, and physically and mentally tough too. He could have walked into any Premier League team in the form he was in when Newcastle finished fifth.
Alongside him it has to be a current centre-back. Fabian Schar, Federico Fernandez and Florian Lejeune probably haven’t played quite enough games to justify inclusion so lets go for Jamaal Lascelles – who is the most improved centre-back. An excellent captain and leader, he’s weighed in with some crucial goals and was a talisman during the Championship promotion campaign.
Paul Dummett is the big option at left-back, simply for proving the critics wrong. Jose Enrique runs him close and was a class act in black and white, but Dummett’s development has been a joy to behold.
Midfielders
A contentious call on the right of midfield where the brief burst of Andros Townsend’s form was not enough to earn inclusion. Joey Barton was another option and enjoyed a renaissance when Newcastle were promoted, playing arguably his best season on the right before talking his way to a move.
Instead we’ll go for Moussa Sissoko , who is an emblem of this period: brilliant and clearly a force of nature on his day but maddeningly inconsistent at the same time. For all the criticism, though, he really could play and was arguably the transfer bargain of a period where Newcastle did enjoy some recruitment success.
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The playmaker is Yohan Cabaye , who was elegance personified in the engine room. Superb technique, capable of picking a killer pass and weighing in with a goal or two as well, he was a relevation in black and white.
His partner? It’s a straight shoot between Cheick Tiote and Kevin Nolan , who were both excellent in their own ways. Nolan earns the nod here, having weighed in with goals in the Championship and Premier League before a move to West Ham, but Tiote can feel hard done by.
Hatem Ben Arfa burned brightly for a period too and some will say he should be in here but if we’re looking for a left sided player then Matt Ritchie deserves to be included for the way he consistently performs in the big games for Newcastle. A cut above in the Championship promotion season, his effort – and performance level – have rarely dipped as he’s played wing-back and across the midfield.
Strikers
It’ll no doubt cause debate but my first pick is Ayoze Perez . Arriving as a low-key signing from Tenerife, Perez was a surprise success in his first season. Became a lightening rod for criticism under Benitez, who asked him to play a specific role but weighed in with goals and performances – especially alongside fellow ‘Amigos’ Salomon Rondon and Miguel Almiron.
Loic Remy and Papiss Cisse are contenders for the other striking slot, with the latter scoring the goal of the decade at Chelsea during a goalscoring run that was as good as any in Newcastle’s recent history.
For his 18 months, the second slot goes to Demba Ba . He was a real, bona fide star during the fifth-placed season – a huge handful for defences and a big presence in the dressing room too.
Rondon’s season is worthy of inclusion in the reckoning and Dwight Gayle’s Championship campaign earns him a nod.
