Eddie Howe's first Newcastle United team call revisited
As Newcastle United draw up transfer plans, two long-serving players – Fabian Schar and Jacob Murphy – are still going strong thanks to Eddie Howe's management.
And he’s still going strong.
Just four days days after signing a contract extension at Newcastle United, Fabian Schar went agonisingly close to scoring from inside his own half during last night’s 3-0 win at the King Power Stadium,
After winning the ball just outside the centre circle, Schar took a couple of touches before launching the ball over Leicester City goalkeeper Mads Hermansen.
The audacious effort, which struck the crossbar, will not have surprised any Newcastle fan.
Schar, we know, can cleanly strike a ball. He’s been doing that since joining the club from Deportivo La Coruna in 2018, though the former banker had surprisingly found himself out of the team in the months before Eddie Howe’s appointment in late 2021.
One of Howe’s first acts as head coach was to recall “unique” Schar to then-winless United’s starting XI for a home game against Brentford, which ended 3-3.
More than three years later, Howe’s still banking on the 33-year-old, who is now under contract until the summer of 2026.
Confident, combative and comfortable on the ball, Schar is Howe’s kind of player.
So much so that Howe had attempted to sign him during his time in charge of Bournemouth.
Schar told me how happy he was to get to “wear the shirt” when I first interviewed him in Braga, Portugal, after the club, then managed by Rafa Benitez, paid just £3million for him.
The shirt has been a good fit for Schar.
As I wrote earlier this season, Schar, along with Robert Lee, must be one of the club’s best pound-for-pound signings.
Lee, incidentally, had found the net from his own half in the 1992/93 season, but the goal against Brentford was bizarrely disallowed after the referee awarded a foul in favour of United.
Schar, for his part, admitted that he was “devastated” to hit the crossbar at the King Power Stadium.
Murphy’s form
Which brings us to Jacob Murphy.
Schar added that he was “happy” for Murphy, who, having opened the scoring, followed up his effort and made it 2-0.
Murphy’s form in recent months is something else. Since the start of December, only Mohamed Salah (28) and Alexander Isak (19) have been involved in more Premier League than Murphy, who has scored seven goals and created seven more.
In December, I wrote about the trip to the seaside more than four years ago which seemingly saved Murphy’s career at the club following back-to-back loans.
Howe will be keen to sign another right-sided attacker to his squad, having sold Miguel Almiron midway through the campaign, while we know the club, which tried to sign Mark Guehi from Crystal Palace last summer, is also looking at potential defensive recruits.
However, Schar and 30-year-old Murphy – who also started Howe’s first game in charge – are still indispensable to Howe, whose team is fifth in the table, and level on points with fourth-placed Chelsea, with eight games left to play.
Next up is a home fixture against Manchester United.
Brack and white
Pity Lewis Hall. The left-back suffered an injury in the weeks before the Carabao Cup final – and was ruled out for the rest of the season.
To make matters worse, Hall could not even attend the final at Wembley, which Newcastle won 2-1, and support his team-mates as he had just had surgery on a broken bone in his foot.
However, the 20-year-old – whose impressive form had earned him an England cap before the injury – was able to join in the celebrations of what was a historic triumph on Tyneside.
Now on the mend, Hall attended a National League North fixture at the weekend.
Hall was spotted at South Shields’ 1st Cloud Arena supporting his brother Connor, who was leading the line for visitors Brackley Town.
It was a good day for promotion-chasing Brackley, who won 1-0 to close the gap on leaders Scunthorpe United to one point.
Connor, like his younger sibling, is a boyhood Newcastle fan.
Speaking to The Sun earlier this season, the 27-year-old said: “It was always Newcastle when we were growing up.”
And United fans will be looking forward to seeing his younger sibling back in black and white next season.
Nice piece on two maybe undersung players. Bit surprised Howe didn't pull Isak off at half-time last night given the score and Man U on Sunday. Isak also didn't seem his sharpest best, so wonder if there's still a 'niggle'.