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Benitez must bring Murphy in from the cold

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Image for Benitez must bring Murphy in from the cold

OPINION

There is nothing more damaging to a player’s confidence than being dropped from two consecutive match day squads – so spare a thought for Newcastle United’s Jacob Murphy.

He has experienced this exact situation recently, so it is hard not to feel sympathy towards him.

Boss Rafa Benitez has now told the 23-year-old to fight for his place in the squad after these recent exclusions, especially as he has been unable to usurp the likes of Matt Ritchie and Kenedy.

“I want them to perform on the pitch in training to put me under more pressure. It’s what we have to do. I told the players on the bench to put me under more pressure,” Benitez said, as quoted by the Chronicle.

“I want them to push me harder. We analyse things but also sometimes when you are making radical changes, it’s because everything is wrong. I don’t accept it’s all wrong.”

Benitez now needs to bring the rarely-seen speedster out from the cold, as his lack of game time is going to seriously hinder his progress.

That is not to say that he should be rewarded with an immediate start in the Premier League, but it does mean that he should not be so overlooked.

Players can be quickly dismissed when others are performing so well, which is not entirely fair on the likes of Murphy.

He has the chance to challenge Christian Atsu for a place on the bench against Bournemouth this weekend, and looking at Atsu’s recent displays, that should not be the hardest thing to achieve.

Admittedly, the youngster needs to step up a gear for Benitez to reward him with a place in the first team, but the confidence he would receive by getting into the match day squad will really do wonders.

It is time for the Spaniard to bring Murphy in from the cold and give him the confidence boost that he so rightly needs after being overlooked for too long.

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