Local Sheffield journalist Alex Miller has described Newcastle United winger Jacob Murphy’s time on loan at Sheffield Wednesday this season as ‘a picture of inconsistency’.
The 24-year-old headed to Hillsborough this summer after failing to impress at St James’ Park since a big money move from Norwich City. However, Sheffield Star reporter Miller feels he needs to do better for the Owls.
“Murphy couldn’t have asked for a better start to his time with Wednesday, scoring with his first touch in a Yorkshire derby win over Barnsley,” he told the Shields Gazette.
“With Kadeem Harris on the opposite wing the Owls had pace on the flanks not seen for many years at Hillsborough and the feeling was early doors that they were the missing link to success. But while Harris has continued to dazzle, Murphy has been a picture of inconsistency, producing glimmers of magic in largely wasteful outings.”
OPINION
That last sentence pretty much sums up Murphy’s performances since making the switch to the north east. We all know he is a terrifically gifted young man, but he has yet to put it all together. He’s 24 years of age now, so it’s time he started to realise his undoubted potential. However, the fact that he can’t seem to cut it in the second tier is very concerning from a Newcastle point of view. The statistics from this season, though, show that there have been some signs of progress. As per WhoScored.com, he is averaging way more shots per game (1.9) than he was at either Newcastle or West Bromwich Albion last term. Meanwhile, his key passes per outing has improved and his dribbles per game average of 2.4 is way more than his tally of 1.1 at West Brom and 0.3 with the Magpies. There’s still room for improvement in his retention of the ball, which is down from the first half of the last campaign, but his average WhoScored rating per game of 6.74 is better than he achieved with Newcastle or the Baggies.
