An “excellent” Newcastle United defender will be allowed to leave the club in January after expressing his deisre to play first team football, according to a new report.
Osula shines as Newcastle breeze past Bromley
Eddie Howe gave a number of his young stars a run out against League Two side Bromley in the FA Cup third round at the weekend, and they did not disappoint. Midfielder Lewis Miley, 18, and striker William Osula, 21, were both on the scoresheet with superb goals in a 3-1 win for the Magpies at St. James’ Park.
Trevan Sanusi, 17, also came off the bench to make his professional debut, and impressed, with Chronicle Live awarding him 7 out of 10 for his display, saying he “caused one or two problems”.
Speaking after the game, Howe praised both Miley and Osula for their goals: “What a brilliant finish from Lewis Miley. From that moment we settled into the game. Lewis played very well. He brings loads of composure and quality on the ball.”
On Osula’s goal, which saw him skillfully cut in from the right wing before bending the ball into the far corner, the English manager said: “He’s been waiting for that moment. He’s been training hard. He has huge potential and quality. I haven’t seen him score many like that. I’m delighted for him.”
Murphy set to leave Newcastle
One young player who wasn’t involved on Sunday and could soon be on his way out of St. James’ Park is Irish defender Alex Murphy. The 20-year-old, who was an unused substitute against Bromley, joined Newcastle from Galway United in the summer of 2022, but has since made just two first team appearances, spending the majority of his time with the club’s reserves.
Murphy recently went public with his request to play senior football, saying via The Shields Gazette: “I want to play as many senior minutes as I can, whether that is here or somewhere else for the year. I want to get as many games under my belt as possible and then, hopefully, the aim is to play here every week.”
And the Gazette report that Newcastle have now made Murphy available for a loan this month, and has had interest from a number of Football League and Scottish Premiership clubs, who are keen to take him on for the remainder of the campaign.
Given that Murphy signed a new long-term contract with Newcastle in May of last year, it’s appears he still has a bright future ahead of him on Tyneside – Howe has also been full of praise for the Irishman in the past.
Speaking about Murphy after he put in an impressive performance in a pre-season game against Chelsea in 2023, the boss had glowing praise: “I thought he was excellent, really, really good.
“He was very composed, and defended really well. I was really, really pleased with him. I’ve always liked Alex. I think he’s a very good technician. But it’s really when you find out about players when you’re in this environment- a full crowd, Premier League opposition. He can be very pleased with his night’s work.”