Newcastle United supporters may have been expecting someone very different, but Alex Murphy could prove a fitting first summer signing of this new era. Yes, Newcastle will spend millions on first-team ready stars in the coming months, but the hierarchy ultimately want to create a sustainable club where talented youngsters eventually make the step up from the academy to represent the first team.
Eddie Howe, himself, has spoken about how 'that part of the club needs to be brought closer to the first team' in the years to come. Central to that will be spotting some of the very best prospects both in the North East and further afield in countries like Ireland.
It is important to stress that Murphy will go straight into the under-23s if, as expected, the deal goes through and there are no guarantees that the Galway United youngster will ever play for Newcastle's first team. However, at the same time, Murphy has been earmarked as a player with real potential, having made his professional debut at just 16 and captaining his country at under-18 level.
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Murphy can operate as both a marauding left-back and a ball-playing centre-back and such have been his mature performances in the Irish second tier, the 17-year-old attracted interest from a host of clubs across the UK. The fact that Newcastle are close to winning the race shows how much the club has changed since the Ashley era.
Indeed, in 2009, Newcastle, inexplicably, passed up the chance to sign another young Irish full-back by the name of Seamus Coleman. It was Everton who, ultimately, coughed up the initial £60,000 for a player who has gone on to captain Ireland and make 377 appearances for the Toffees.
That is not meant to be a direct comparison as Coleman was 20 when he moved to England and previously played in the Irish top-flight. However, Newcastle have at least since rediscovered a fruitful market across the water where there are good youngsters with first-team experience available at bargain prices.
Clubs in Italy have certainly taken note and taken advantage of the fact that they can sign these players from the age of 16: Kevin Zefi has moved to Inter Milan, Cathal Heffernan has joined AC Milan and James Abankwah has signed for Udinese. British clubs, in contrast, have to wait until these youngsters turn 18, because of Brexit, but, crucially, the common travel area agreement means they do not require special permits unlike prospects from elsewhere in Europe.
Celtic and Crystal Palace have been among those who have tapped into this market in recent months after signing Johnny Kenny and Killian Phillips respectively. The pair just so happen to be represented by the same agency, Polaris Sports, as Murphy.
Expect Murphy to be the first of a number of signings at academy level in the months and years to come at Newcastle, particularly when Dan Ashworth takes up his position as the club's sporting director. Ashworth's formative years in football were in youth development, where he did everything from washing the kit to coaching the reserves, and the 51-year-old will help ensure that youngsters have the best possible chance of breaking through when he comes in.
Indeed, before Ashworth will even discuss first-team signings at Newcastle, the sporting director will consult a depth chart of players who are out on loan, in the under-23s and in the under-18s. Murphy's name looks set to be among those that will one day feature on that chart in Ashworth's office.
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