Murphy was the real unsung hero in securing first win

NICK Woltemade grabbed all the headlines with a debut goal, Sandro Tonali was excellent in midfield and Nick Pope, Fabian Schar and Dan Burn all made eye-catching interventions to preserve a third Newcastle clean sheet in four Premier League matches.

- By SEAN MCCORMICK

But the performance of Jacob Murphy in the Magpies’ 1-0 win over Wolves deserves a lot of plaudits too. The 30-year-old enjoyed his career best season last term, bagging nine goals and 13 assists in all competitions.

His form saw him usurp Miguel Almiron as Newcastle's first choice right-winger which ultimately led to the Paraguayan’s January sale to Atlanta United. So good were Murphy’s performances towards the end of last season that there was talk of a possible England call-up.

Of course, competition for places in the wide areas for the Three Lions is ridiculously competitive and teeming with quality but it was testament to Murphy's season that he was even in the conversation.

But despite his success last term it was acknowledged that Newcastle had to bring in competition on the right hand side for Murphy in the summer and they did just that with the £55million arrival of Anthony Elanga.

The Swedish international was largely seen as an upgrade after an excellent season with Nottingham Forest. His pace and trickery is perhaps something Murphy hadn't brought to the table and offers Newcastle a genuine alternative.