Danny Murphy

At 47 years old, Danny Murphy has this physical status:

Club career

Murphy, a native of Chester, Cheshire, began working as a volunteer at Crewe Alexandra. Murphy has always praised the role of Crewe chief Dario Gradi in his footballing education, considering him as his mentor.

Murphy defended Gradi's reputation in November 2016, as the United Kingdom football sexual harassment scandal erupted.

Gradue always valued Murphy's footballing brain and used to send him on scouting trips even as a trainee. Murphy made his debut as a 16-year-old substitute in December 1993, coming off the bench against Bradford City in a Football League Trophy tie. In a 4-3 victory over Preston North End, Murphy scored on his home debut for Crewe. Murphy mainly played as a deep-lying forward for Crewe, scoring several spectacular long range and set piece goals. Murphy spent time at Gresty Road with striker Dele Adebola.

Several top flight clubs were keeping an eye on Murphy ahead of his proposed transfer to Liverpool. For the first time since 1896, Crewe finished third in Division Two before going on to defeat Brentford 1–0 at Wembley in the 1997 play-off final. He left for Crewe.

He made his debut as a substitute on the first day of the 1997–98 season as a replacement after signing for Liverpool in 1997 for a modest fee of £1.5 million. However, he did not join the first team squad straight away, and after making just one league appearance for the club during the next season, he returned to Crewe on loan, during which he helped save his old club from relegation. He seemed to be sold after the loan period was over, but he went on to become a first-team regular at Anfield.

Despite being primarily a central midfielder, Murphy played as a wide midfielder due to the fierce competition for positions, particularly Steven Gerrard and Dietmar Hamann. Murphy's career at Liverpool included a cup treble in 2001 (where Liverpool won the League Cup, FA Cup, and UEFA Cup), a Premier League second-place finish in 2002, and a second League Cup in 2003. Phil Thompson, Liverpool's assistant manager, praised Murphy during the 2001–2002 season, citing his versatility and saying him as "probably the most tactically aware player we have." Despite the fact that the 2002–03 season was a disappointing one for Liverpool, with the club falling to fifth place in the table after a lengthy winless run in mid-winter, Murphy had a good individual campaign that saw him score 12 goals and be named supporters' player of the season. He appeared in the 2003 Football League Cup Final as Liverpool defeated Manchester United after being forced to postpone the 2001 final due to injury.

In 1–0 victories over Manchester United at Old Trafford, he had a habit of scoring the deciding goal, a feat he hadn't achieved three times in four seasons (2000–01, 2001–02, and 2003–04).

Murphy joined Charlton Athletic from Liverpool for £2.5 million on a four-year deal in August 2004. Murphy's first season at Charlton failed to recapture the form he had seen at Liverpool. However, in the first three months of the 2005–06 season, he emerged as a viable alternative for England once more, winning the September player of the Month award as well as scoring many goals along the way.

Murphy was transferred to Tottenham Hotspur for £2 million on January 31, 2006. In the remaining games of the season, he appeared only marginally. After only 39 seconds of the game, Murphy scored his first Tottenham goal in the 2–1 victory over Portsmouth on October 1, 2006.

Jermain Defoe was hurt in a pre-match warm-up against Newcastle United, and manager Martin Jol brought Murphy into a 4–1 formation. Murphy blasted Steven Taylor in the chest with a scissors kick, deflecting it across goalkeeper Shay Givens. The FA decided to take the ball away from Murphy and replace it with a Taylor-goal goal.

Murphy was struggling to establish himself as a regular at Tottenham Hotspur, but he later stated that there were no differences between him and Jol, despite what media reports revealed.

Murphy's Tottenham Hotspur deal came to an end on August 31, 2007.

Murphy defended himself as a regular starter, stayed in the team throughout the season and scored six goals in 43 games. Fulham defeated Portsmouth 1–0 on May 11, 2008, guaranteeing their Premier League longevity at the expense of Birmingham City and Reading; manager Roy Hodgson was ready to bring Murphy back to full life. Murphy discussed Hodgson's "key role" in the team's avoidance of relegation following the match. Murphy has been named team captain for 2008–09 and has signed a new one-year deal with the option for a second year at the end of the season.

Fulham defeated Newcastle United 2–1 on Monday, as Murphy scored his 100th goal at club level from the penalty box. Fulham defeated Manchester United at home for the first time in 45 years. Murphy scored another goal.

Murphy's contract was not renewed during the year, but the year's option on his Murphy's deal was not renewed until June 2011. Murphy missed two months in the early stages of the season due to a knee ligament injury, but captain Fulham went on to their first European final. They defeated Juventus, defending champions Shakhtar Donetsk, Bundesliga champions Wolfsburg, and Hamburg, among others, to advance to the 2010 UEFA Europa League Finals. Murphy said that winning the semifinal would be "one of the finest achievements of our time." Fulham lost 21-0 to Atlético Madrid, a goal that came just four minutes from the end of extra time.

Hodgson, who left for Liverpool, was unable to return to Liverpool and was replaced by Mark Hughes in the 2010-11 season. Murphy made a contentious remark about players' managers' responsibility for dangerous tackles made by players in October. Some of his remarks were endorsed by others, but other executives had scathing comments. Murphy said his remarks were "blown out of proportion" in reaction to these remarks. Murphy signed a new contract extension in late-January 2011 that will run until 2012. Murphy scored his first goal of the season and another as Fulham defeated Tottenham Hotspur 4–0 in the FA Cup's fourth round. Murphy was praised by manager Mark Hughes for helping the club turn things around and prevent relegation.

Murphy believed he'd be a major part in the 2011–12 season and declared himself "fitter than ever" before starting. He was released by Fulham at the end of the 2011–12 season after making forty-nine appearances and scoring seven times in all competitions, but Hughes, Hodgson's replacement, could not reach an agreement extension. Murphy had more goalscoring opportunities in his last season at Craven Cottage than any other player in the top flight.

Blackburn Rovers announced the signing of Murphy on a two-year contract on June 25, 2012. He was unveiled on July 2nd, 2012 wearing the same number 13 squad number that he wore throughout his career, as well as Mark Bunn's. Murphy said he joined Blackburn Rovers for first team football and that it was the right time to leave Fulham.

In a 2–2 draw with Huddersfield Town on Sunday, he scored his first goal for Blackburn. On January 5, 2013, he scored his second goal in the FA Cup against Bristol City. Shannon was appointed as Blackburn's captain by Scott Dann in March 2013.

Despite being able to remain with the club for another season, Murphy's deal was terminated by mutual consent on July 1, 2013. Murphy was praised by boss Gary Bowyer for his assistance during Bowyer's time as manager of Blackburn Rovers.

International career

Murphy was capped nine times for England and scored one goal. In a 4–0 victory over Paraguay in April 2002, he made his international debut in a friendly match against Sweden in November 2001, scoring his first international goal. Steven Gerrard, the team's injured colleague, was supposed to participate in the 2002 World Cup but had to withdraw from the squad after suffering a metatarsal injury similar to that which had affected England teammates David Beckham and Gary Neville in the run-up to the tournament.

Post-playing career

Murphy appeared on BBC show Match of the Day on August 18, 2013 as a new pundit. On October 10, 2013, he declared his retirement as a player with the intention of retaining his broadcasting work and improving his coaching credentials.

He has worked as a pundit on the radio station Talksport in the United Kingdom.

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