Sheffield Wednesday got a taste of what Newcastle United are having with Jacob Murphy | OneFootball

Jacob Murphy was excellent in a 2019 loan spell at Hillsborough.

Jacob Murphy has unexpectedly become a standout performer in the Premier League this season.

The Newcastle United winger has produced both goals and assists for his team this term, and has already surpassed his previous strongest season in terms of goal contributions in the Premier League.

The 30-year-old recently set up Alexander Isak’s goal in the EFL Cup final, which saw the Magpies lift their first domestic trophy for 70 years under the Wembley arch.

That was just the latest high in what has been an excellent season for Murphy. However, his recent success has been so impressive that it’s easy to forget he spent time on loan at several EFL clubs before excelling in the top flight.

Among those clubs were Sheffield Wednesday, who got a taste of the hype surrounding the winger back in 2019, when he was a key figure for them over the course of a season-long loan deal.

Jacob Murphy was excellent for Sheffield Wednesday

A product of the Norwich City academy setup, Murphy had already had several loan spells at varying levels of the Football League before he arrived at Hillsborough.

Stints with Swindon, Southend, Blackpool, Scunthorpe and Colchester all came and went without a great deal of effect, before his time at Coventry City really kickstarted his career.

The then-20-year-old was hugely influential for the Sky Blues in the 2015/16 season, notching nine goals and 10 assists as his team finished just shy of the play-off positions.

His breakthrough season with Norwich came the year after, with Murphy’s nine goals and six assists catching the eye of Newcastle, who bought him for £12m in July 2017.

After struggling in the early stages of his time in the North East, another pair of loan spells followed, first with West Brom in 2018/19, and then with Wednesday in 2019/20.

Murphy’s stint at Hillsborough served as a reminder to everyone as to what he was capable of at Championship level.

The wideman was a shining light in what was a fairly disappointing season for the Owls, as Garry Monk’s side laboured to a 16th-placed finish in the second tier.

Murphy was an impressive performer for Wednesday and, by the end of the Covid-affected campaign, his tally of nine league goals was behind only Steven Fletcher in the Owls’ ranks. He also added four assists, topping off what was one of the strongest individual seasons of his career.

Murphy has become a key player for Newcastle in the last two seasons

After the success of his original loan spell at Hillsborough, Wednesday were hopeful of bringing Murphy back to the club once again the following season. However, their hopes were dashed by Steve Bruce, who opted to keep the wideman at St James’ Park.

Now, several years down the line, it is clear that the decision has been vindicated.

Over the course of his first five Premier League seasons with Newcastle, Murphy managed a total of just eight goals and nine assists.

By comparison, his tally from the last two seasons alone is comfortably higher.

Murphy appears to be something of a ‘late bloomer’ and a player who begins to play the best football of his career fairly late on in his development.

Now 30, what is arguably the best season of his life this term.

There were signs of what was to come last season, when he struck three goals and seven assists from just 21 league outings for Eddie Howe’s side, but his form has hit another level entirely since the start of this season.

Murphy has turned out top-quality displays on a consistent basis, and has shown a level of creativity that it’s fair to say many people perhaps didn’t associate with him previously.

The winger was even nominated for the Premier League’s Player of the Month award back in December, after notching three goals and four assists across the month.

Having already achieved domestic success this term, Murphy and Newcastle will be hopeful of a return to the Champions League next season, with the Magpies seemingly in with a good chance of securing a spot in the top four.