Newcastle United are looking to offload Jacob Murphy this summer (Getty Images)
According to Chronicle Live, Sheffield Wednesday are trying to sign Newcastle United winger Jacob Murphy for another season at Hillsborough.
Murphy, 25, rose through the ranks of Norwich City’s youth system and featured for several clubs on loan before joining Newcastle United for £12m in the summer of 2017. However, in the three years at St. James’ Park, he has made just 41 appearances, with a large chunk of his time being spent on loan spells.
Despite not being able to perform well in his loan spell at West Brom last season, the winger has been in tremendous form this season for the Owls, helping them to 14th position in the Championship table. He has been impressive under Garry Monk and has developed a lot. Thus, Newcastle should keep hold of him once he returns from his loan spell.
The Magpies, meanwhile, have endured mixed results so far in the campaign. Despite being in the top half of the table for the majority of the season, they are struggling to get back into the top-10 at the moment. They have been inconsistent throughout the campaign and are in dire need of depth in the squad.
Steve Bruce’s men have not been at their best as a unit. One of the reasons for their poor campaign is the lack of consistency in front of goal. They have managed to score just 37 goals so far which is poor for a club of their stature. Thus, keeping hold of their best players, at any cost, would be a smart decision.
On the left side of the frontline, they have Allan Saint-Maximin and Rolando Aarons in their ranks. But they lack depth on the right wing, with Murphy the only player available.
And since he is on loan throughout the season, the manager was forced to turn towards attacking midfielder Miguel Almiron to start on the right side of the attack. However, with Murphy in their ranks, they could do better next season.
The 25-year-old has been in fine form this season for Wednesday, scoring 7 goals and providing 4 assists in 36 games in the league. He could be a valuable asset for the Magpies as Atsu’s contract comes to an end with the club this summer and Aarons has just one more year left with the club.
Keeping him would also help them save a lot of resources, especially at this time when there are financial issues due to the pandemic. Instead of selling him and looking for another player in the transfer market, Newcastle should make the best use of Murphy as he is in good nick.
At 25, Murphy is in good form and would add to Bruce’s squad depth. He would definitely bring in his quality and could go on to be a crucial player if he is able to replicate the same form. Thus, they should keep hold of the former Norwich City man and enjoy his best, which is yet to come.
