Jacob Murphy was Newcastle’s biggest signing in the summer of 2017. His failure to impress on loan at West Brom will be concerning to Newcastle fans.
Jacob Murphy joined from Norwich on July 19, 2017, for a fee of £10.17M. For a young English winger who was a big fan of the club, this was not a bad signing at all.
However, being the marquee signing on the club’s return to the top flight may have put a lot of pressure on the youngster.
Jacob Murphy – has had little impact in a Newcastle shirt
We knew Jacob would take time to adapt to the Premier League and his first season was decent if not very impactful. He made 13 starts and featured 12 more times as a substitute.
He did seem to lack confidence when on the pitch and offered little in the final third. However, he had pace and we believe Newcastle fans were willing to be patient but with him.
This season Jacob really needed to come through and show that he was a quality Premiership player. Unfortunately, he has done just the opposite.
Jacob has gone backward this year and failed to play much of a part at all in the Newcastle side. He has made just 3 starts in 9 total appearances and showed very little in those precious few moments.
In desperate need of playing time, Rafa sent young Jacob on-loan to West Brom this January where he teamed up with another on-loan Newcastle player in Dwight Gayle.
Jacob started well in the Championship, with 2 goals in his first five appearances. However, since then he has managed only four further starts with just one assist to his credit.
Jacob is 24 years old now and should be at a point when he is making his mark at Newcastle.
We just can’t see that happening at this point but hope he can prove us wrong.
51 comments so far
geordietom
May 14, 2019 at 11:03 AM
Comment #1sell him …
never gonna get a game for us …
shame though i think he was’nt ready for the step up …
Jail for Ashley
May 14, 2019 at 11:08 AM
Comment #2I think if we weren’t fighting relegation and he could have been introduced slowly it might have worked out different for him, a signing that imo was done as a compromise towards the U25 policy and should have never happened, do you think that Rafa had never heard of Madison either??
Lee Charnley Bunga Party
May 14, 2019 at 11:11 AM
Comment #3If we are going to stick to 343 which I think we should as it gets the best out of our squad then I can’t really see a place for Murphy unless he is going to be like Richie and get converted into a wing back?!
We might even struggle to get our money back as he hasn’t been that great on loan either
RobLeenio
May 14, 2019 at 11:16 AM
Comment #4Budge123 “Hayden second half of season was a revelation and will cost more to replace than we get for him”
Not necessarily. Hayden should go for £15M – £20M or so, Schaer only cost £3.5M. There are bargains to be had and Rafa with his scouting network is the right man to find them.
Jail for Ashley
May 14, 2019 at 11:17 AM
Comment #5Murphy is going to fetch 5M tops if we can shift him, Townsend would cost you 25M now, but Jib reckons the sane people are making the right decisions at the club.
Ben Afri
May 14, 2019 at 11:17 AM
Comment #6I actually think what may have happened was that at the time of getting Murphy in, Rafa may have still been under the impression that he was going to be allowed further signings. Why else would Rafa make an untested (in the PL) young championship player his top signing that window? Of course I may be wrong but that’s what I think may have happened
Jail for Ashley
May 14, 2019 at 11:20 AM
Comment #7ilovetoon 666 reckons Schar was a revolution 😀
DubaiMicky
May 14, 2019 at 11:24 AM
Comment #8So we’ve been drawn against Wolves in the semi-final (calling it a semi final when it’s one of 2 games is laughable) of the Premier League Asia Trophy, Citeh will face West Ham in the other game.
Then there’s a third/fourth playoff and a final, “semis” played Wednesday, July 17, and the “finals” on Saturday, July 20.
Anyone going? I’m thinking about it at the moment, depends on how work is going.
Jail for Ashley
May 14, 2019 at 11:25 AM
Comment #9Ben Afri,
I think a mixture of that and showing that he was willing to compromise, he got shafted and had fans like Munster going on about the wasted Murphy money for the next two years.
DaveD1000
May 14, 2019 at 11:26 AM
Comment #10I always thought Murphy would come good……..wrong again
Ben Afri
May 14, 2019 at 11:28 AM
Comment #11Jail
There’s a possibility you may be right too. One thing we both agree on without doubt is that he got shafted, and unfortunately, it was Rafa who was left exposed to scrutiny
Ben Afri
May 14, 2019 at 11:29 AM
Comment #12DaveD1000
Doesn’t matter that you were wrong. I was wrong about Perez. I lost patience with him and I know have this constant taste in my mouth of my own foot. I just think it was good that you were willing to give Murphy the chance. That’s what matters most
Jail for Ashley
May 14, 2019 at 11:32 AM
Comment #13I was desperate to see Murphy come good but I watched his debut against Hellas Verona and he had all the time in the world and didn’t do much at all.
Budge123
May 14, 2019 at 11:35 AM
Comment #14Rob agree there are bargains out there but as this thread proves also a lot of mistakes out there ( as Munster loves to point out )
The point I was trying to make that 50 mill on top of what we have is enough to challenge for Europe – second tier.
But 50m to replace and improve will rely on cheap potential being purchased and coming god.
50 mill sounds great and let’s Ashley and his supporters show he’s willing to invest but in reality is probably 20 mil light of what we require if we don’t want purchases to be all about potential
Jib
May 14, 2019 at 11:35 AM
Comment #15Mickey you could drive there !!!!
Iran Pakistan Northern India Bangladesh
Piece of cake
😛
Ben Afri
May 14, 2019 at 11:49 AM
Comment #16I’d hate to sound like a broken record because there is enough negativity, but mistakes (signings) is exactly what you risk when you’re only spending 13 million on a player. That’s just the territory we find ourselves in when your budget lacks ambition
martoon
May 14, 2019 at 11:57 AM
Comment #17Ben Afri@6 – I think that’s what definitely happened. I might have my dates mixed up but I think that’s about the time when Ashley sent his enforcer Barnes in and suddenly the spending stopped. It’s also about the time Rafa’s demeanor changed and he started muttering about false promises – for whatever reason Ashley suddenly decided to break his promise and pull the spending rug from under Rafa!
martoon
May 14, 2019 at 12:00 PM
Comment #18On topic I think Murphy has struggled at WBA because he’s competing with Phillips who’s quite decent from what I’ve seen of him – maybe we should try to swap them as well 😉
RobLeenio
May 14, 2019 at 12:08 PM
Comment #19Budge, I think you’re in danger of seeing the £50M (kinda pledged by Charnley in his statement when the accounts were released) as being an upper limit for spending. Obviously we need to factor in outgoing player sales also, which could easily total another £30 – £50M.
That assumes, of course, that Ashley is prepared for the club to spend incoming transfer fees on payer recruitment, which as we know hasn’t always been forthcoming.
I would hope that this will be one of the major points of negotiation between Rafa and the club when discussing his contract, so if he signs, we should expect that to be the case.
RobLeenio
May 14, 2019 at 12:12 PM
Comment #20I saw someone yesterday say we should trade in Ciaran Clark this Summer. I don’t see that myself, Clark has been a good and loyal servant, seems happy to be a squad member with occasional outings and has done well whenever he’s been called on. He’s even chipped in with some goals.
I’m not sure we could replace him with anyone better with as good an attitude, so if he’s happy to stay, let’s keep him. If we’re playing three at the back, we need at least three players who can play CB to cover the starters and we’re losing Hayden as it stands who is one of those who could fill in there.
Keep Clark, concentrate on higher priorities this Summer.
DubaiMicky
May 14, 2019 at 12:14 PM
Comment #21Jib, not thinking Iran is a good idea at the minute (although it is a beautiful country and the locals are really nice people), I don’t want to be jailed! Again LOL
Return flights are £400, 9 hours each way! There’s a train between the two cities (takes 2.5hrs), that’ll be cheap enough, and the tickets start at a tenner each.
Am just asking around the usual suspects here (UAE) to see if we can get a few interested.
Jib
May 14, 2019 at 12:15 PM
Comment #22Barnes was brought in above Charnley end of May early June 2017
Murphy bought 19 July 2017
It looks like Murphy’s signing was a piece of appeasement and
Rafa was stiffed thereafter
Lindisfarne
May 14, 2019 at 12:18 PM
Comment #23I see Murphy as a potential replacement for Perez if he were to be sold, obviously with a great deal of training. With the minimum of improvement over half a season, he would raise more than his transfer fee.
DubaiMicky
May 14, 2019 at 12:22 PM
Comment #24Hoots is favourite to take over at Celtic, followed by Moyes and then….. Rafa.
RobLeenio
May 14, 2019 at 12:23 PM
Comment #25Murphy has done some great things on the pitch. His goal vs Man City away last season was a thing of beauty.
https://vimeo.com/269740242
Sadly, he’s not done it often enough, but that said, he hasn’t had very many chances either. At 24, I think we would have all hoped for a bit more progress by now.
There’s still time, but I don’t think we’ll see it happen for him.
Lindisfarne
May 14, 2019 at 12:25 PM
Comment #26Murphy was a club purchase, not originally a target of Rafa. The fact that there was not an endless twoing and frowing of bids indicates that he was not identified by the manager.
Lee Charnley Bunga Party
May 14, 2019 at 12:33 PM
Comment #27When we signed Murphy he was one of the best performing players in the championship and I do think Rafa would have wanted to sign him but also to have Townsend and Rondon as well and this is where Ashley obviously went back on promises that Rafa alluded too.
Buying from the championship is a bit like buying from a foreign league there is no guarantees they can make the step up Maddison stepped up but there has been plenty bought for good money who have flopped big time!
Murphy does have some good qualities but if anything it seems a lack of belief that lets him down he seems to freeze when playing at St James’s park whereas some players thrive in that environment such as Almiron , Shelvey and Schar! You need to be a good player but also a brave player to do things on the pitch at Newcastle and I just don’t think he can ever get that belief!?
I do wonder how he would do getting 6 or 7 games in a row from the start and playing 90 minutes as Longstaff/Hayden have as he has only ever had 2 or 3 games in a row if he is lucky unfortunately I don’t think we can afford him the luxury!
martoon
May 14, 2019 at 12:45 PM
Comment #28Jib @22 – Cheers it was from memory but I thought it was about the same time. Do we know Barnes is above Charnley (that’s brought a horrible image into my head!) because it has never been made clear exactly what his role is and who’s payroll he is on? – nufc or Ashley.
Lindisfarne
May 14, 2019 at 12:55 PM
Comment #29https://www.theguardian.com/football/2019/may/14/premier-league-2018-19-tactical-review-press-and-possess
Another year of possession imbalance.
Jib
May 14, 2019 at 12:57 PM
Comment #30Martoon
He’s on SD payroll
He looks after their patents and branding (that’s his area
of expertise)
He was then brought in to kick ass at Rangers.
Then brought into NUFC to tidy up our act for buyers
(acquisitions and mergers is another specialty of his)
Originally Ashley was hoping Barnes could interest some investment
(would you like to share a venture with the lawn trampler ?) in the club
which soon turned into washing his hands of us all together.
Ashley seems to change his mind with the weather – hard guy to deal with.
Good luck to Rafa this week
RobLeenio
May 14, 2019 at 1:12 PM
Comment #31The Mag is really angry today. I mean like seriously upset. Have they ever heard of balance?
RobLeenio
May 14, 2019 at 1:17 PM
Comment #32Premier League form table for the last 16 games has us in 5th, behind Man City, Liverpool, Arsenal and Wolves.
If we can take that form forward to next season….
ilovetoon8788
May 14, 2019 at 1:24 PM
Comment #33We just bought the wrong Murphy. This Murphy can’t even cut it in the championship. League one player at best.
RobLeenio
May 14, 2019 at 1:27 PM
Comment #34Cal Roberts could be off to Panathanaikos. If you can’t play your footy in Newcastle, then Athens has to be a pretty good alternative.
Certainly beats Hull, Blackpool or Croydon (for eg)
RobLeenio
May 14, 2019 at 1:32 PM
Comment #35Lindisfarne, that’s an interesting article, thanks for sharing.
geordie157
May 14, 2019 at 1:32 PM
Comment #36Gayle and Murphy for Rondon. Sorted. If only it was that simple!
chicousa
May 14, 2019 at 1:34 PM
Comment #37Calling Murphy or Atsu or any of our other wingers ‘pacy’ seems a bit of an overstatement since Almiron arrived. Now THAT lad is PACY!!! 😉
martoon
May 14, 2019 at 1:35 PM
Comment #38It’s so pathetic to say we bought the wrong Murphy! Josh has struggled to get in a relegation bound Cardiff team – he had one good game against Manquillo.
Charlie in the Gallowgate
May 14, 2019 at 1:41 PM
Comment #39Just been up to the ground today
Seem to be Clearing out the stock from the bars????
cyprus
May 14, 2019 at 1:42 PM
Comment #40I think it’s a bit unrealistic to refer to unsuccessful purchases as ‘club’ buys and good ones as Rafa buys.
In general, we’ve done well, on a limited budget. Murphy just isn’t good enough. Sell, for 2-4 million. We’ve released way better players.
50 million, spent well, can do wonders. There are plenty of 10 million players around Europe and elsewhere doing extremely well.
I think we should bring in just three players with that money. That’s if we keep the star performers.