WHEN MOST FOOTBALLERS are left out of the first-team they still want their side to do well, but hope the player in their position has a nightmare.
And as striker Dwight Gayle snatched a last-gasp winner for Newcastle on Wednesday against Norwich to complete his hat-trick, you’d have to wonder what was the first thought going through Daryl Murphy’s head.
The 33-year-old has struggled to break into Newcastle’s matchday squad, let alone their starting XI, since he sealed his move from Ipswich at the end of last month.
In the six games Newcastle have played since Murphy’s move, he has started just once – in the EFL Cup victory over Wolves, but has failed to even make the bench for their other five league games.
“I’m absolutely delighted to get it over the line and really looking forward to it,” Murphy said after signing for the Magpies. ”When I knew the club was interested, it was a no-brainer for me so I’m happy it’s all done.”
Despite his enthusiasm with the move, Murphy would have been well aware of the challenge he faced to break into the side, with Rafa Benitez preferring to play with a sole striker.
Over the past year, Newcastle have spent close to £25 million on two strikers ahead of Murphy in the pecking order.
Aleksandar Mitrovic arrived from Anderlecht last season for £15 million, while Gayle moved to the North East from Crystal Palace this summer for another £10 million, and has thrived since his transfer with seven goals in nine appearances so far this term.
That’s not to mention the former Spanish U21 international forward Ayoze Perez, who is also struggling for game time.
“He is a player with experience in this competition [Championship], and who has scored goals at this level. What I have seen from him is a confirmation of what people told me – he is a good professional who is very positive for the team,” Benitez said on Murphy’s lack of first-team action.
“Sometimes we talk about a player having been a disaster because he’s not played all that much, but the thing you need to realise is that maybe just because he’s there, he’s keeping the other players in his position on their toes.
“If he’s doing that he’s doing a job and he’s doing it well. It’s all about the team in the end and the goal of getting us back into the Premier League. If someone plays more or less games or scores more or less goals to me it doesn’t matter. It’s all about the team.”
An opportunity to work with one of the most respected coaches in Europe, and a chance to play for one the best supported teams in England was too good an opportunity turn down, but Murphy has to bide his time hoping to prove what is best for the team and what is best for him, do not necessarily have to be mutually exclusive.
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