In a recent interview (via Nottingham Post), Newcastle United boss Steve Bruce was full of praise for Jacob Murphy following his match-saving heroics in the 1-1 draw versus Wolverhampton Wanderers last weekend. Bruce said, “He was arguably our best player today and I’m delighted for him. He had a big loan at Sheffield Wednesday last year and that did him the world of good.
“I never contemplated it (a loan move) from the first week he was back. He was a different player. Certainly physically he’s come back in really good condition.
“We all know he’s a good athlete and he certainly looks like he’s matured. He had been practicing free-kicks on Thursday in training and I was thinking ‘let’s see if he can do it again’.
“The development is there for everybody to see. Now it was about ‘can he come and perform at this level?’. He was certainly comfortable.
“I’m delighted with the resilience of the players especially with the problems we had, lot of players were out of position.”
Murphy’s Impressive Form In English Football Recently
Murphy has been a sporadic feature for the Magpies in recent times but has still managed to establish himself as a valuable member of their match-day squad. The ex-Norwich City winger has made a bright start to this campaign, after scoring two goals and providing one assist in five matches on all fronts. He has been a joy to watch for the Tyneside outfit so far but only time will tell whether he can maintain his high standards for the remainder of this campaign.
The 25-year-old enjoyed a fruitful loan spell with Sheffield United in the previous term when he registered nine goals and six assists in 44 appearances for the Owls across various competitions. Murphy performed well to average 0.8 tackles, 1.7 shots, 1.1 key passes and 1.7 dribbles per game in the 2019-20 EFL Championship season. However, he needs to improve his ball-distribution after making only 68.2% of his attempted passes in the English second division (stats via whoscored).
What Are The English Wing Wizard’s Best Attributes?
Murphy boasts decent pace in his locker that helps him get past his marker with ease in the final third. He is quick and agile enough to cause a lot of problems for the opposition out on the wide areas. The English playmaker has got the vision to pick out a killer pass in the decisive end of the field and can also contribute by scoring his fair share of goals from the flanks. However, as mentioned earlier, he has to get better when passing the ball in the attacking half so that he can stay relevant at the top level.
Does Murphy Have A Future At St. James’ Park?
Murphy has begun to produce some eye-catching performances for the Magpies of late which shows how much he matured during his loan spell at the Hillsborough Stadium last season. Hence, it makes sense for Steve Bruce to consider holding on to his services for the long-run.
Murphy’s current contract with the Tyneside giants is set to expire at the end of this campaign. However, if he can continue performing at a high level on the field, then there is no reason why he won’t earn a new deal and have a bright future at St. James’ Park in the coming years.
