Newport County A.F.C.
2016-2017 Roster Review
It's always fun to do these after having the type of successful season we had in '16-'17. It took us a little bit to get going at the start of the season but midway through the first half of the season we were already in first place and at the midway point we were locked into a clear-cut battle against Plymouth Argyle, running away with the race early in the second half of the season. A lot of good performances were needed in order to achieve the success we had this year.
Starting XI
GK - Emiliano Martinez (68 OVR) -
57 appearances, 22 clean sheets: The acquisition of the 24-year old Argentinian from Arsenal this past summer wasn't necessarily popular with a fan base that had been quite pleased by Joe Day's performance last season but Martinez proved his worth, racking up seven more sheets than Day had last season with just one more appearance. Furthermore, his average game rating did not finish lower than 7.00 in any of the four competitions (League 2, COC, JTP, F.A.) which is actually quite impressive, and makes it no surprise he was voted into the league's Starting XI.
9/10
RB - Mehmet Zeki Çelik (65 OVR) -
17 apps: The 20-year old from Turkey was acquired in the winter transfer window due to his potential and quickly got an opportunity to start at RB after an injury to Seth Nana Twumasi. Çelik performed well enough to keep coaches intrigued about his development as a starter but didn't necessarily impress on either end of the pitch. Regardless, he's likely to go into next season penciled-in as the starter at this position.
7/10
RCB - Juan Komar (69 OVR) -
53 apps: The 20-year old from Argentina acquired from Boca Juniors this past summer had a very good first season. It's often said that the less you hear a defender's name, the better he's performing, and Komar went largely unmentioned this season, quietly leading The Exiles' back four to help Martinez achieve his 22 clean sheets. He'll hope to build on this season performance to continue to improve his game next season.
7.5/10
LCB - Taylor Moore (66 OVR) -
35 apps, 3 goals, 2 assists: The 20-year old from England started the season as our 3rd CB but ended up taking over as a starter for Matt Taylor (retiring) as the season got close to its midway point. A couple of scores with headers sealed his worth to the starting lineup, and his contributions on offense were an important attribute because he isn't quite the defender Komar is.
7/10
LB - Jerome Binnom-Williams (70 OVR) -
51 apps, 1 goal, 10 assists: The 22-year old from England made The Exiles look like thieves after acquiring him in the summer for 700 from Crystal Palace. He was OUTSTANDING on both sides of the pitch, quietly being a force on defense while constantly being involved on offense as reflected by his 10 assists in all competitions (his 8 assists in league play were tied for 3rd most). He edges Komar for best player in the back-line and it'll be interesting to see if he can have improve even more next season.
8/10
CDM - Gary Gardner (73 OVR) -
53 apps, 10 goals, 8 assists: Last season's league and team MVP did not find it difficult to have a repeat performance, once again scoring 10 goals as he continued to be surgical from the penalty strike. The 24-year old and team captain from England also continues to be a stopper in his central defensive midfield position and the expectation is that he'll once again have a repeat performance next season in League One.
9/10
RM - Oliver Burke (68 OVR) -
50 apps, 5 goals, 9 assists: The Exiles say good bye to the 20-year old speedster from Scotland as his two-year loan from Nottingham Forest comes to an end. Newport couldn't have asked for much more from Burke, who took a big step forward this season after mostly meeting expectations last season. He improved his assists and scored five times this season after failing to score at all last season, getting more comfortable breaking into the box from the wing. Nevertheless, the emergence of wingers from the academy means the end of Burke's deal will provide opportunities for home-grown talent.
8/10
LM - Jack Giles (67 OVR) -
44 apps, 8 goals, 6 assists: It was an eventful first full season for the 19-year old academy-graduate from England, establishing himself as a useful contributor off the bench early in the season which made the club comfortable to agree to a sell of former team captain Medy Elito to slide Giles into the starting lineup. Unfortunately a couple of injuries made him end the season on a bad note but that shouldn't keep him from the starting lineup next season.
7.5/10
Mark Byrne (66 OVR) -
53 apps, 16 goals, 10 assists: The 28-year old from Ireland was hands down the most improved player for The Exiles this season, by all means having a career year. The club possesses two excellent prospects at this position in Clark Gordon and Konsta Salo yet Byrne made sure his performances left no doubt he was the man at CAM for the club this season. Not quite team MVP, but he put himself firmly in the discussion which was very impressive in and of itself.
9/10
RS - Manuel Arteaga (70 OVR) -
48 apps, 25 goals, 12 assists: The 23-yead old from Venezuela on loan from Palermo was named team co-MVP. Newport fans were quite irate that Arteaga was edged by Swindon Town's Ojamaa for Player of the Year. He followed last season's league-best 21 goals with 20 this season and more than doubled his assists. As mentioned in the last update, his improvement as a player means Palermo has committed to making him a bigger part of their club moving forward so it's very highly unlikely Arteaga will be returning to the club. He'll leave a big void to fill and it'll be interesting to see who will carry that responsibility next season.
10/10
LS - Jack McKay (68 OVR)-
49 apps, 21 goals, 13 assists: " (...) he shows great chemistry with the Venezuelan and it'll be fun to watch them possibly battle for the scoring title next season." That's a quote from McKay's review at the end of last season. The 20-year old from England proved that his performance in the second half of last season (after he was acquired in the winter transfer window) was no fluke, battling all season for the league's scoring title and helping The Exiles achieve great success in the process. Overall he scored a bit less than Arteaga but spread out his assists over different competitions and it was only fair that he was voted co-MVP. No doubt he'll miss his partner in crime so it'll be interesting to see how he adjusts next season to a new scoring partner.
10/10
Bench
RB - Danny Holmes (65 OVR) -
51 apps, 4 assists: The 28-year old from England was a good soldier for us, accepting his demotion from the starting lineup while continuing to be a regular contributor off the bench and with the B-squad. Nevertheless, he was transer-listed all season and it's likely he'll made available again next season as the club looks to replace him with someone with higher upside.
6.5/10
RB - Seth Nana Twumasi (64 OVR) -
49 apps, 2 goals, 3 assists: The 27-year old from England lost his starting gig into the second half of the season but didn't let that keep him from being an important piece to the puzzle. He's versatile enough to play RB/LB and offers good pace.
7/10
CB - Matt Tyalor (62 OVR) -
34 apps: The 35-year old's final season faded him slowly into the background, going from team captain at the season's beginning to a sporadic contributor at season's end. The former goalkeeper wraps up his career with no regrets and received a going away party from the team.
6.5/10
CDM - Cristiano Dall'Oglio (60 OVR) -
18 apps, 2 assists: The 17-year old from Italy saw his hard work in the youth academy pay off with a promotion midway through the season as someone who could spell Gardner from time to time. He's described as someone "showing great potential". Dall'Oglio is locked into this role as the moment which should allow him to continue to improve as a player without much pressure. When he was called upon to play larger minutes with the B-squad he was always up to the task.
7/10
LW - Bondz Moore (66 OVR) -
16 apps, 2 goals, 3 assists: The 17-year old from England who is "showing great potential" was promoted from the youth squad in the winter after Elito's sale and performed well when called upon. Furthermore, when Giles went down with injury he stepped into the starting lineup and was not overwhelmed. As a result, he's penciled into the starting lineup for next season at LM so it'll be interesting to see whether he can continue to exhibit such maturity at such young age. Then again, he did earn a silly red card near the end of the season but that isn't enough to shade his overall performance.
7/10
CAM - Konsta Salo (69 OVR) -
15 apps, 1 goal: The 17-year old crown jewel of Finland is described as "an exciting prospect". He earned promotion from the academy midway through the season after Elito's sale meant Giles could no longer perform in a backup CAM role. Salo did not ever seem overwhelmed by being a pro at such a young age and his immense talen is only handicapped by very poor stamina. Regardless, he stands to be a key player for the club in the immediate future and fans are very excited about getting a full season from him.
7/10
ST - Aaron Collins (60 OVR) -
11 apps, 4 goals: The club's plan going into the season was for Collins and Patrick Miller to be listed for loan and keep whoever didn't get an offer first. That turned into an opportunity for the 20-year old from Wales who brushed aside a poor first half of the season to score four goals after the winter transfer window, including a brace at Bristol Rovers. He's not a candidate to replace Arteaga next season but would continue to have value to the club in the same role he had this season.
7/10
ST - Marcus Thuram (65 OVR) -
5 apps, 2 goals, 1 assists: Someone who played so few times for us in a season usually doesn't warrant a mention in our reviews but the 19-year old from France is an exemption since he goes into next season as the top candidate inside the club to replace Arteaga. Thuram, the son of the most capped player in the history of the France national team, mostly played with the B-squad after arriving in the winter for 500K from FC Sochaux-Montbéliard and as a result the club doesn't have a great evaluation of him going into next season. Nevertheless, 2 goals, and assist, and a 6.80 rating in five games doesn't present any red flags, so he at least has that much going for him.
7/10
: with Clark Gordon (66 OVR) recently promoted from the academy it'll be interesting to see what happens with the logjam at CAM (Byrne/Salo/Gordon). Ben Potter, who was promoted in early April, should also have a regular role as a backup to to B.Moore/Giles. There's no question that the club's ability to provide talent through the academy is going to continue be a big factor going forward as the club's transfer/wage budget continues to be limited.