Newcastle United Greatest All-Time Team
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| Inter-Cities Fairs Cup 1969 |
Please also see my All-Time World Cup Team Index.
This is my selection of a 25 member all-time team for the club. The number 25 was chosen because it is the official squad size for the Champions' League.
The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, and has played at its current home ground, St James' Park, ever since. They have won four League Championship titles, six FA Cups and a Charity Shield, as well as the 1969 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup and the 2006 UEFA Intertoto Cup. Newcastle United has the ninth highest total of trophies won by an English club.
Team
GK: Shay Given (Ireland)
Given started his career with Celtic, but made his professional debut with Blackburn Rovers. He was remembered for playing with Newcastle United from 1997 to 2009. He was voted into PFA Team of the Year twice, 2001-2002 and 2005-2006. He earned 126 caps for Ireland. He played in the 2002 WC Finals and Euro 2010.
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| Shay Given |
Simpson was one of the "Lisbon Lions" who won the European Cup in 1967. He also played for Queen's Park, Third Lanark and Hibernian. He represented Great Britain at the 1948 Olympics, but he did not play for Scotland until 1966. He set a new record for being the oldest player to make his Scotland debut, aged 36 years and 196 days. He was Celtics' best ever keeper.
GK: Jimmy Lawrence (Scotland)
Born in Glasgow, Lawrence's first club was Partick Athletic, from where he moved to Glasgow Perthshire. Although still connected to Glasgow Perthshire, he sporadically played for Edinburgh side Hibernian. He played with Newcastle for eighteen years after joining the Tyneside club in 1904 and still holds the record for making the most appearances for them, 496 matches in total. Capped once.
RB: Billy McCracken (Northern Ireland)
He was one of the most successful defender of his time. McCracken played for the English club Newcastle United from 1904 to 1924, helping them win three League titles and the FA Cup. He was known for setting the offside trap for the attackers. The offside rule was changed because of him. He was a part of Ireland(IFA) that became the co-champion of the 1903 British Home Championship, the first time the tournament was not won by England or Scotland.
RB: David Craig (Northern Ireland)
David Craig joined Newcastle United in 1962 and went on to make 412 appearances for the club, scoring 12 goals. He left the club in 1978 after retiring from the game, and remains seventh-highest appearance-maker for the club. Frank Clark played on the other side. He played 25 times for Northern Ireland, fighting a position with Arsenal's Pat Rice at the time.
CB/RB: Warren Barton (England)
Barton began his league career with Maidstone United. He was transferred to First Division side Wimbledon on 7 June 1990 as the most expensive for a 4th Division player. In 1995, he became the most expensive defender in English football when he moved to Newcastle United for £4 million. He later played QPR and Derby. Capped 3 times.
CB: Bobby Moncur (Scotland)
Bobby Moncur played a total of 296 times for Newcastle United, scoring three goals – all in the two-legged final of the 1969 Fairs Cup. He also played 16 times for Scotland between 1968 and 1972. In 1974 after Captaining Newcastle in the FA Cup final, he was transferred to Sunderland, moving again to Carlisle United in 1976, where he ended his playing career.
CB: Philippe Albert (Belgium)
He made 41 appearances for the Belgium from 1987 to 1997, and represented his country at the 1990 and 1994 World Cups. He played for Charleroi, KV Mechelen and Anderlecht in his native Belgium, and for English clubs Newcastle United and Fulham. He was known as an attack-minded centre-back for his forward runs from defence in the team dubbed as "the Entertainers"
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| Philippe Albert |
Brennan was a tough centre half who moved to Newcastle United from Airdrieonians for £7,500 in 1946. He appeared on 351 occasions for the Magpies between 1946 and 1956. He was a part of Newcastle United's victory at the FA Cup in 1951 and 1952. He was indicted into Newcastle Hall of Fame. Capped 8 times.
LB: Frank Hudspeth (England)
Hudspeth spent nineteen seasons at Newcastle, from 1910 to 1929. This makes him the joint longest servant for the club along with Billy McCracken. During his time at the club he became a popular figure amongst the fans and gained the nickname 'Old Surefoot' for his reliability. He captained the team from 1923 to 1926.
LB: Alf McMichael (Northern Ireland)
He played over 400 times for Newcastle United between 1950 and 1963. He won the 1952 FA Cup. At one point he was considered the best left-back in Britain and was a popular player amongst Newcastle United supporters. Before Newcastle United, he played for Linfield from 1945 to 1950. He represented Northern Ireland 40 times.
DM: Joe Harvey (England)
Harvey played briefly for different clubs and then, joined Newcastle in 1945. He spent much of his career at Newcastle United. He was the club's longest serving captain. Later, he became Newcastle's most successful manager, and as of the 2014–15 season, the last to win a major trophy. Harvy was a member of Newcastle United's Hall of Fame.
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| Joe Harvey with the 1951 FA Cup |
Lee came through the academy of Charlton Athletic and established himself in the first team by the 1984–85 season. He was sold after the start of 1992–93 season to Newcastle United. He played for England between 1994 and 1998, scoring twice in 21 appearances. He was in the squad for the 1998 World Cup under Glenn Hoddle.
RW: Jock Rutherford (England)
Rutherford was known for his longevity; he played nearly six hundred Football League and FA Cup matches, despite four seasons of football being cancelled due to World War I. He started his career at Newcastle United. Nicknamed "the Newcastle flyer", he spent ten seasons at the "Magpies", picked up three First Division medals, and played in five FA Cup finals (1905, 1906, 1908, 1910 and 1911). Won 11 caps.
AM/LW: Gary Speed (England)
Speed played professionally for Leeds United, Everton, Newcastle United, Bolton Wanderers and Sheffield United. He held the record for the most appearances in the Premier League at 535, until it was surpassed by David James. He was best remembered for winning the English league title in 1992 with Leeds United.. He made the PFA Team of the year in 1993. He was capped 85 times for Wales and served as the captain.
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| Gary Speed |
For the national team, he was blamed for the goal against Bulgaria that eliminated France for the 1994 WC qualification. He moved to England shortly afterward. Ginola became a big star at the English Preimer League in the late 1990's. In England, he played for Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspurs, Aston Villa and Everton. he won both PFA and FWA Player of the Year in 1998-1999.
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| David Ginola |
In 1998, he became the first Peruvian to play in the Premier League when he joined Newcastle United from Boca Juniors. He played 15 seasons in England. He also played for Aston Villa, West Ham and Leicester City. At home, he is associated with Sporting Cristal. He earned 95 caps for Peru. He made his debut as a 18 years old in 1994.
AM: Paul Gascoigne(England)
Gazza was the most gifted player of his generation, but his career was marked controversy and injuries. He made his debut with Newcastle United before moving to Tottenham Hotspur. After impressing at Italia 1990, he moved to Lazio. However, his career there was marked with injuries and incidents off the field. In 1995, he joined Rangers with a club record fee. He had a successful career at Rangers, but he left in 1998 and went to play for many clubs all over the WC Finals. For the national team, he earned 57 times. He was remembered for the tears in his eyes as he received his yellow card against West Germany in the semi-final.
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| Paul Gazza |
Robledo was born in Iquique, Chile to a Chilean father and an English mother. He plated for Barnsley after the War. He joined Newcastle United in 1949. In the 1950–51 season , he became the first South American to play in the FA Cup final, also winning it. He finished as Division One's top scorer in the 1951–52 season with 33 goals, becoming the first non-British to win the title. Chile recruited Robledo for the 1950 FIFA World Cup, even though he spoke no Spanish. He made his debut in the opening group game against England. He would be capped 31 times. He would also play for Colo Colo.
FW: Peter Beardsley (England)
Beardsley was one of the few players i history to have played for Liverpool, Everton, Manchester United and Manchester City. His first successes came in the early 1980's while playing for Newcastle United. In 1987, he joined Liverpool as the most expensive player in England's history. Together with John Barnes, they formed one of the best English sides of the later 1980's.
CF: Jackie Milburn (England)
Milburn was best remembered for his career with Newcastle United and was considered one of the club's greatest player. He won three FA Cup titles in 5 years in the 1950's. He was a second cousin to Jack and Bobby Charlton. He went to the WC finals in 1950, which was England's first ever appearance at the WC Finals.
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| Jackie Milburn |
His playing career included spells at Queens Park Rangers, Beşiktaş, Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham United, Leicester City, Bolton Wanderers, Reading and Watford during which period he earned 17 caps for England. Ferdinand is the eighth highest scorer in the Premier League with 149 goals
ST: Hughie Gallacher (Scotland)
Gallacher scored 463 goals, playing senior league football for Airdrieonians, Newcastle United, Chelsea, Derby County, Notts County, Grimsby Town and Gateshead. Prior to his he also played and scored for then non-league Queen of the South. For Scotland, he scored 23 goals in 20 games for Scotland. He was also a member of "Wembley Wizards", the Scottish team that beat England 5-1 in 1928.
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| Hughie Gallacher |
Two-time European Footballer of the Year in 1978 and 1979. He won the European Cup in 1977 with Liverpool. He also found successes in the Bundesliga with Hamburger SV. He later played for Southampton and Newcastle United. He had 63 caps for England. However, his WC appearance was limited to 20 minutes against Spain at the WC Finals in 1982.
ST: Alan Shearer (England)
Shearer is the all-time leading top-scorer for the Premiership. In 1992, he joined Blackburn Rovers from Southampton in a record transfer. He won the Premiership for 1994-1995 season. In 1996, he joined his home town club, Newcastle United for a world record transfer fees. He was FWA Player of the Year in 1994, and PFA Player of the Year in 1995 and 1997. For England, he earned 63 caps. IN 1996, he led England to the semi-final of Euro 1996 at home, winning the Golden boot award. He also played the 1998 WC Finals and Euro 2000.
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| Alan Sheaer |
Honorable Mention
Malcolm McDonald, Andy Cole, Steve Watson, Faustino Asprilla, Chris Waddle, Jimmy Scoular, Bobby Mitchell, Jonathan Woodgate, Pavel Srmicek, Shola Ameobi, Steve Harper, Colin Veitch.
Squad Explanation
-- I took Jock Rutherford over Jimmy Scoular at right wing because he won more trophies and at a time when Newcastle dominated.
-- Chris Waddle and Bobby Mitchell were left wings. I already have Speed and Ginola. Both players were more associated with the club than Waddle. I prefer the younger players than Mitchell.
-- Jonathan Woodgate only played a handful of games for Newcastle.
-- Hughie Gallacher, Jackie Milburn and Alan Shearer were locked for two of the strikers' position. Kevin Keegan only played two seasons with Newcastle, but he helped Newcastle to gain promotion from the second division. He was a popular figure with the fans.
-- Jorge "George" Robledo was selected because he broke a historical milestone. He was the first non-British to be the top scorer in England.
-- The final striker position was between Les Ferdinand and Andy Cole. Andy Cole played for the club from 1993 to 1995, scoring 68 goals in 86 appearances. Both players scored a lot of goals, and only spent two seasons there. Cole scored 40 goals in his first season, which was a record for the club in all competition for a single season. Hughie Gallacher holds the record for the highest number of "league" goals in a season with 36. I selected Ferdinand because his team came second twice in his two seasons.
-- Malcolm McDonald, Shola Ameobi, Steve Harper and Colin Veitch are into their Hall of Fame. They only made my honorable mention.
Formation
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