Jacob Murphy is not the sort of player we want at Everton | OneFootball

Jacob Murphy is not the sort of player we want at Everton

(Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Sky Sports' Keith Downie is reporting that Everton have identified Newcastle United winger Jacob Murphy as a primary target to reinforce the Blues' forward line this summer.

The 31-year-old has entered the final 12 months of his contract at St James' Park and, with the Magpies facing a squad overhaul following a lack of European football for the upcoming campaign, Eddie Howe is reportedly willing to cash in rather than lose him for nothing next year. Rumours suggest a fee in the region of £10M to £13M could get the deal done as Newcastle look to balance their books after offloading the likes of Anthony Gordon and Sandro Tonali.

If there is a textbook definition of an uninspired, late-career Everton panic buy, this is surely it.

On paper, the logic from the Finch Farm hierarchy is depressingly predictable. With Dwight McNeil heavily linked with a move away as he enters the final year of his own contract, and the perennially underwhelming Jack Harrison experiment long over, the recruitment team is looking for Premier League experience on a budget. Murphy managed decent numbers for a high-flying Newcastle side a couple of seasons ago, but a closer look at his recent trajectory suggests we are buying a player right at the start of a steep decline.

Last season, Murphy found himself increasingly relegated to a squad role, frequently hauled off early when he did start — such as his ineffective 45-minute outing against Fulham in the season finale, or being hooked around the hour mark against Nottingham Forest and Arsenal. He’s a player whose game relies heavily on explosive bursts down the flank, and at 31, paying upwards of £10M for an aging wide man looking for one final, lucrative payday feels like a catastrophic misuse of what little resources we have.

Furthermore, what does this say to the few bright sparks we actually have in the squad? The stillborn emergence of young Tyler Dibling on the right wing, alongside Tyrique George, gives us a genuine chance to build something for the future. Blocking their pathway with a Newcastle cast-off who is diabolically poor in possession in his own half and brings zero resale value is exactly the kind of short-termism that got us close to financial ruin in the first place.

If Murphy is brought in strictly as cheap, low-wage squad depth for under £5M, you might look past it. But if we are genuinely looking at him to replace the output of a departing McNeil, then the alarm bells should be ringing. We've spent years trying to clear the deadwood of 30-something Premier League journeymen out of the club; let’s not start collecting any more of them!

This fits the profile of our usual bargain-bin scouring all too well.

Reader Comments (9)

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Mike Powell 2 Posted 11/07/2026 at 21:32:24

I hope these Murphy rumours are bullshit

Alan J Thompson 3 Posted 12/07/2026 at 05:34:39

The BBC say that this Jacob Murphy we are reported interested in is a 31-year-old winger which is all we need unless it's to make signing Grealish look ordinary but whoever with that number of wingers we know which direction the Pickford hoof will go.

Tom Bowers 4 Posted 12/07/2026 at 11:22:22

We don't want another winger who cannot get starts at another club especially at 31.

We may get Grealish on loan again but not on the terms of last season.

George may be the answer but I think shedding a few others may come first.

All the talk in Geordieland is that he's on his way.

He's 31... we might get a couple of years out of him but let's be honest, anyone who's watched him knows that he gives 100%. He's up and down that line all day. Some of the crosses he puts in beg for a touch.

Yes, he's at the end of his days... but are we hoping Dibling can compete in the Premier League? Better a Murphy hitting the ground running than some Southern homesick case.

Mal van Schaick 7 Posted 12/07/2026 at 22:27:12

Another backward step if he’s on their radar.

8 Posted 12/07/2026 at 23:25:12

Murphy hit the ground running!!? I sincerely hope this is a transfer that doesn't happen.

His best days are a long way behind him and even they weren't particularly impressive

On a different note, out first pre season game is less than a week away and we have one new face through the door so far. Hardly inspiring is it?

If, as has been suggested by some, we were waiting on the new financial year to kick in, how come nothing has happened since the Hackney deal?

Surely we had players lined up prior to the start of July? Or are we set for another season of bargain bin signings right at the end of the window?