Outstanding Sky Sports analysis – What makes Jacob Murphy such an important player | OneFootball

This is really good on Jacob Murphy from Sky Sports.

They have been evaluating the importance of the lifelong Newcastle United fan this season.

Sky Sports in particular looking at these past five months, from 1 December 2024 onwards.

Jacob Murphy didn’t score or get an assist on Saturday.

However, the right winger did make the run and get fouled for the penalty that led to the key opening goal against Ipswich, then for the second goal it was Murphy who passed to Kieran Trippier, who crossed for Dan Burn to head in the second.

Excellent Sky Sports analysis below and they sum it up perfectly with this; ‘Murphy’s form has become more than a hot streak, more than a placeholder for a team with big aspirations. While Harvey Barnes and Anthony Gordon compete for a spot on the left, he has simply become one of Newcastle’s best players.’

I can’t disagree with that at all, the stats speak for themselves, as well as the evidence of our own eyes.

Sky Sports special analysis on Jacob Murphy – 28 April 2025:

Welcome to The Debrief, a Sky Sports column in which Adam Bate uses a blend of data and opinion to reflect on some of the key stories from the latest Premier League matches.

Murphy is now a star at Newcastle

Since the start of December, there are only two players in the Premier League who rank in the top 10 for both goals and assists. It will not come as a surprise to many that Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah is one of them. The other is Newcastle’s Jacob Murphy.

With eight goals and nine assists in the competition since then, Murphy has been a revelation on the right wing. Since being recalled for the 3-3 draw against Salah’s Liverpool in early December, the 30-year-old has started every Premier League game.

Murphy technically did not add to those goal and assist tallies in the 3-0 win over Ipswich but it was his smart run inside that drew the foul from which Newcastle won their opening penalty. He also played the pass before the pass for the second goal too.

That happens a lot. There is a metric that calculates the total expected goals of every possession in which an individual player is involved. It has Murphy, this uncapped Englishman, in third place during this period, behind only Salah and Luis Diaz.

How about some more numbers? There have been 87 crosses from open play, second to Fulham’s Antonee Robinson. Murphy is in the top 10 for high speed runs and for distance covered while sprinting. He is up there underlapping and overlapping runs.

Positioning and shooting

Chances created

“Full credit to Jacob,” said Jason Tindall recently. “He has been at the football club a long time and I am sure if he were someone we had signed at the start of the season or January from somewhere then he would be receiving more plaudits than he is.”

He has a point. Murphy’s form has become more than a hot streak, more than a placeholder for a team with big aspirations. While Harvey Barnes and Anthony Gordon compete for a spot on the left, he has simply become one of Newcastle’s best players.’