Last hopes of Sheffield Wednesday signing Jacob Murphy dashed by Steve Bruce

The winger, who scored nine goals on loan at Hillsborough last season, produced a classy performance in the Magpies’ 7-1 Carabao Cup win at Morecambe last night, prompting Toon boss Steve Bruce to confirm any thoughts of him leaving the club on loan in the coming weeks were no longer.

Murphy, a boyhood Newcastle fan, made one and scored one on a night that convinced Bruce to keep him as part of his plans this season.

“I won’t be letting him out,” said Bruce. “After that kind of performance, I definitely won’t be letting him go. He deserves to stay with us.

“He’s improved enormously, and I’ve been very pleased with him, even though he hasn’t made the squad for the weekend. We’ve got a lot of players to choose from, but at this particular moment, I won’t be letting Jacob go.”

Earlier this month Bruce, who left Wednesday to take up the job at St James Park last summer, confirmed that the Owls had made an effort to re-sign Murphy but made clear he was keen to have a closer look at him.

He was also believed to be of interest of a handful of other Championship clubs including Nottingham Forest and Derby County.

The 25-year-old hasn’t quite got going at the club that spent a reported £10m on his signing from Norwich in 2017, but with the confidence of a nine-goal season behind him, he appears to have made the most of his early-season opportunities, also scoring in a friendly clash with Barnsley.

Bruce said: “He’s had a really good pre-season, and showed a great attitude towards it. He’s benefited from being out on loan, and had a really good loan last year at Sheffield Wednesday, who think really highly of him.

“He’s a good young player, who’s direct and quick, and he’s grasped his chance and really given us food for thought. Arguably, he was our best player tonight, so fair play to him for that.”

Murphy’s contract at Newcastle is up at the end of this season.

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