Newcastle United have enjoyed a solid start to the 2022/23 campaign with Eddie Howe in his first full season in charge of the Magpies after joining the club last year.

The Toon have only lost one of their six matches in the Premier League this season and are 11th in the table with seven points on the board as it stands.

This comes after Dan Ashworth dipped into the transfer market to improve Howe's squad in the summer window, bringing in Nick Pope, Alexander Isak, Matt Targett and Sven Botman.

The deal to bring in Isak, who Radio presenter Kev Lawson dubbed a "unicorn", from Real Sociedad was a club-record outlay for the Magpies and was a statement of intent by PIF as they showed that they mean business and want to push the team further up the top-flight pecking order.

He has played two matches in the Premier League since making the move and scored one goal, netting against Liverpool on his debut.

The striker made a brilliant run in behind against the Reds and slammed a finish into the roof of the net at Anfield, which illustrated his natural instincts in front of goal.

It is now down to his team-mates to provide him with the chances that he needs to consistently find the net throughout the rest of the campaign.

Howe may now be able to unlock the £48k-per-week gem's full potential by unleashing creative midfielder Elliot Anderson from the start in upcoming matches.

The 19-year-old, who journalist Harry Roy dubbed the "Geordie Maradona", is a promising young player who caught the eye out on loan last season, and he deserves an opportunity to showcase his quality in Newcastle's first team.

In 20 starts on loan at Bristol Rovers, the attacking midfielder created a whopping eight 'big chances' and provided 1.9 key passes per match in League Two.

Since coming back to Newcastle in the summer, he has played 51 minutes in the Premier League and created one 'big chance'. This suggests that Anderson has the ability to step up and create chances for his team-mates in the top flight, although he must now prove that he can do it consistently, just as he did during his time away on loan.

Isak scored 23 goals in his last two full La Liga campaigns and he could thrive off the service that Anderson has the quality to provide from a midfield position. He could add to his goal tally by latching onto passes and crosses from the youngster, and that is why Howe must start the 19-year-old to see if he has the capability to make the step up from the start.