OPINION
Rafa Benitez must shun Newcastle United attacker Jacob Murphy as he aims to guide his side to positive results after the 23-year-old submitted a dire display against Manchester United.
The Magpies loss 3-2 to Manchester United on Saturday at Old Trafford, despite having a tremendous first-half which saw them take a comfortable 2-0 lead.
However Jose Mourinho rallied his troops in the second-half and the Magpies simply couldn’t cope.
Yet while several Magpies players must be showered with praise despite Man United managing to turn the game around, one who should be far from praised is Murphy.
The 23-year-old replaced Kenedy in the 68th minute of the match as the Brazilian suffered a knock and was so dire he bordered on invisible.
Murphy didn’t make any sort of positive impact and didn’t seem to have the desire in order to try and make things happen despite the game turning against his side.
The winger lacked any form of intensity and given his blistering pace, he could have caused Man United problems even if his side were playing on counter-attack but he simply didn’t.
Murphy’s performance is only made worse when you considered how much success Kenedy had in the game playing on the same flank.
The winger has been given numerous chances by Benitez to impress since joining the club in July 2017, but has never been able to establish himself as guaranteed starter due to disappointing performances.
While Murphy may still be young, he hasn’t shown signs that he is improving from his experience and it’s debatable whether he has actually improved at all while at St James Park.
The 23-year-old’s latest display showed that he is currently unable to help his side get points and Benitez can’t afford to use players whose teammates must carry them to a good performance.
This all means that Benitez must shun Murphy, at least for a few games, as after witnessing his uninspired display against Man United then it’s clear he can’t be relied upon to deliver the goods.
