Carabao Cup winner Jacob Murphy is taking inspiration from Newcastle team-mate Dan Burn as he attempts to play himself into England contention.
The 30-year-old winger was a key figure in the Magpies’ 2-1 Wembley victory over Liverpool, setting up Alexander Isak for what proved to be the decisive goal after Burn had headed them into a first-half lead.
Murphy looked on proudly as Burn won his first England cap in a World Cup qualifier against Albania five days later at the age of 32 and, having been told repeatedly by Newcastle coach Graeme Jones that should be his aim too, has not given up hope of following suit.
The former Norwich man said: “To see Dan get his call-up was amazing. It does give you that extra motivation to know it’s possible. We’ve got Gordy [Anthony Gordon], Lewis Hall, Tino [Livramento] and when you’re kicking it with them every week, you know what you have to offer, you think there’s every chance in the future.
“I keep my head down and, you know, I’ve just won a cup with Newcastle, so who’s to say no to getting a call-up?”
Murphy, a £12million signing from Norwich during the summer of 2017, at one point looked to be heading out of St James’ Park, but he has established himself as a regular in Eddie Howe’s side after striking up a hugely productive partnership with star striker Isak.
Born in London to parents from the north east, he grew up as a Newcastle fan and his journey from supporting act to cup winner is one he has relished all the more as a result.
Speaking as he and his team-mates paraded the trophy in front of 300,000 adoring fans on Saturday, he said: “The journey I’ve been on… There’s one point where everyone thought it was my time to go.
“I never thought that and here I am on that bus parade, and leaping at the back post, nodding it down to our superstar striker to put us 2-0 in front, so it’s just an amazing journey, one I’m proud of and one my family are proud of. It’s just awesome.”
Saturday’s celebrations brought Tyneside to a standstill as around 150,000 people lined the city’s streets for an open-top bus parade to an event on the Town Moor attended by a crowd of similar size.
Murphy said: “I didn’t know there were that many people in Newcastle. You drive these streets daily, weekly, but then to see them full of people is something you can’t put into words. It looks crazy, surreal.
“As a club, we want to be doing that every season and, without putting too much pressure on ourselves, we’ve now set a level and that’s what we have to be aiming for and striving for every season.
“Granted it’s not going to happen every season because wonderful teams up and down the country are going to make it difficult for us, but these are moments, now that we’ve got a taste for it, and we want it again.”
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