Eddie Howe and his Newcastle United coaches have been impressed with one youngster who’s trained with the first-team recently.
Newcastle have enjoyed an improved run of form of late, with Eddie Howe’s men currently making up the top seven in the Premier League.
The Magpies sit just a point behind Manchester United after picking up four wins from their last six games in the league.
It’s no secret that it’s been a difficult season for Howe when it comes to injuries, with several key Newcastle players picking up issues.
Howe hasn’t been afraid to hand some of his talented youngsters an opportunity during this spell, with Lewis Miley making an impression earlier in the season.
Last time out, Newcastle thrashed Sheffield United 5-1 at St James’ Park and youngster Alex Murphy made his second appearance of the season.
Murphy highly rated by Howe and Newcastle coaches
In a Q&A on The Athletic, journalist Chris Waugh responded when asked how highly-rated Murphy is at Newcastle.
“As for Murphy, the 19-year-old is viewed positively by Howe and the coaching staff, having trained on-off with the first team for much of the past 18 months,” Waugh said.
“Injuries have contributed to his promotion to the bench, but when Howe turned to Murphy against Sheffield United at the weekend, he did so partly on merit, because there were alternative options.
“There are reports Murphy may be close to a new contract and I do expect the Irishman to get opportunities to stake his claim during pre-season.”
Murphy’s minutes for Newcastle this season
With Howe struggling for options in defence at the moment, the Englishman turned to Murphy during the win over the Blades last time out.
The 19-year-old got eight minutes under his belt after replacing Lewis Hall in the 82nd minute.
Earlier this season, Murphy also came on for the last few minutes in a 4-1 win over Chelsea at St James’ Park.
The Irishman has racked up seven appearances for Newcastle’s Under-21s this season.
Of course, Dan Burn has operated at centre-back of late and has performed well in the position during an improved run for Howe’s side.
This could lead to more opportunities for Murphy at left-back, which would only benefit the youngster’s development.
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