Michael Owen's Premier League Team of the Season ft. Haaland, Toney & Saliba | OneFootball

Michael Owen has named his Premier League Team of the Season for the 2022/23 campaign.

Owen, who scored 150 goals in 326 Premier League games before retiring in 2013, enjoyed his greatest personal success during an eight-season top-flight run with boyhood side Liverpool.

Not a single player from Anfield made it into his best XI for the season, though.

However, the 43-year-old did make room for players from two of the other Premier League clubs he represented during his career, Newcastle and Manchester United.

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Let's now take a look at Owen's selections in full, which he has elected to be managed by Newcastle boss Eddie Howe.

Michael Owen names his Premier League Team of the Season for 2022/23

Goalkeeper: Nick Pope (Newcastle)

"There are a few [players] set in stone," admitted Owen - per HITC - when he first began to explain his picks.

"Whereas I think you could have, quite justifiably say, let’s go for the goalkeeper, for example. There are probably four or five goalkeepers that you could go for."

Owen then mentioned that Man Utd shot-stopper (and Premier League Golden Glove winner) David de Gea wouldn't even make his top five candidates for the nod in between the sticks.

"Funnily enough, I probably wouldn’t put David de Gea in my top five this season. Ederson is on my bench. I think Alisson at Liverpool has been very good indeed. There have been lots of good goalkeepers.

"But I do think that Nick Pope has been exceptional this season. And, as you say, one of the best defensive records in the Premier League."

Defence: Kieran Trippier (Newcastle), John Stones (Manchester City), William Saliba (Arsenal), Luke Shaw (Man Utd)

Man City's Ruben Dias was a unanimous selection when Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville picked their Team of the Season on Monday Night Football earlier this week, but there's not even room for the Portuguese centre-back on Owen's substitutes bench.

Instead, Arsenal's Saliba is in at the heart of the defence, with Owen describing the 22-year-old as having been "immense" over the course of the season.

Midfield: Kevin De Bruyne (Man City), Rodri (Man City), Martin Odegaard (Arsenal)

An identical midfield trio as Carragher and Neville named in their respective teams, these picks really aren't up for too much debate.

Odegaard, in particular, was singled out for praise by Owen.

"His goals, his influence... he has stepped up to the mark this season. Arsenal have had a fantastic season themselves and I had to get their skipper in."

Forwards: Ivan Toney (Brentford), Harry Kane (Tottenham), Erling Haaland (Man City)

No Team of the Season this time around would be complete without Man City's record-breaking frontman Haaland.

Despite Spurs having an indifferent campaign, Kane's 28 top-flight goals make him another perfectly justifiable pick.

However, Owen's selection of Brentford's Toney is one that might raise a few eyebrows.

"When I first picked the team, I must admit, I had Saka in that position," he revealed.

"Then I looked at his numbers and I had a little re-think. I saw Mo Salah there. He has much better numbers. He has scored miles more goals.

"I demoted Saka because Salah, even Rashford actually, possibly on numbers, anyway, they have had better seasons than Saka.

"I thought, ‘Okay, I am going to drop Saka, then bring Toney in’. I think he has been brilliant throughout the season. Playing in a team that wouldn’t create as many chances, as the likes of Manchester City, so I thought I would throw him in there."

Saka, though, did make it the cut for Owen's bench, which is packed full of some of the brightest talent the Premier League has to offer.