Danny Murphy

Murphy helped Crewe earn promotion to the second tier of English football for the first time since 1896, as Crewe finished third in the Second Division, before going on to beat Brentford 1–0 at Wembley Stadium in the 1997 play-off final.

Daniel Ben Murphy (born 18 March 1977) is an English former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.

Daniel Ben Murphy was born on 18 March 1977 in Chester, Cheshire.

He started his career as a trainee at Crewe Alexandra.

Murphy praised the role of Crewe manager Dario Gradi in his footballing education, considering him as his mentor.

Murphy began his career with Crewe Alexandra in 1993 before moving to Liverpool in 1997.

With Liverpool, he won the League Cup, FA Cup and UEFA Cup.

Murphy made his first-team debut for Crewe as a 16-year-old on 7 December 1993, coming on as a substitute in a 3–2 away win over Bradford City in the Football League Trophy.

He scored on his home debut, with the winner in a 4–3 home win against Preston North End in the league.

Murphy generally played as a deep-lying forward for Crewe, scoring several spectacular long range and set piece goals.

While at Gresty Road, Murphy formed a prolific partnership with striker Dele Adebola.

Murphy signed for Premier League club Liverpool in 1997 for an initial fee of £1.5 million.

He made his debut as a substitute on the opening day of the 1997–98 season in a draw with Wimbledon.

However, he did not break into the team immediately and, after making just one league appearance for the club during the following season, he returned to Crewe on loan, during which he helped save his old club from relegation.

After the loan period ended, he went on to become a regular at Liverpool.

Though naturally a central midfielder, Murphy often played as a wide midfielder due to competition for places, particularly from Steven Gerrard and Dietmar Hamann.

He developed a habit of scoring the deciding goal in 1–0 wins away to Manchester United at, a feat he achieved three times in four seasons (2000–01, 2001–02 and 2003–04).

Murphy made nine appearances for the England national team from his debut in 2001, scoring once.

Murphy's career at Liverpool included a cup double in 2001 (FA Cup and UEFA Cup), a Premier League second-place finish in 2002, and the League Cup in 2003.

During the 2001–02 season, when he established himself as a key member of the side, Liverpool's assistant manager Phil Thompson praised Murphy, citing his versatility and describing him as 'probably the most tactically aware player that we have.' Although the 2002–03 season was overall a disappointing one for Liverpool, with the club dropping to fifth in the table, Murphy had a fine individual campaign which saw him score 12 goals and be voted the supporters' player of the season.

He also started the 2003 League Cup final as Liverpool beat Manchester United, having missed the 2001 final due to injury.

Murphy signed for Charlton Athletic in August 2004 on a four-year contract for a fee of £2.5 million.

In his first season at Charlton, Murphy struggled to recapture the form that he had shown at Liverpool.

However, in the first three months of the 2005–06 season he emerged as a viable option for England once more, and also won the Premier League Player of the Month award for September, scoring several goals along the way.

On 31 January 2006, Murphy signed for Tottenham Hotspur for a fee of £2 million.

He appeared only fleetingly in the remaining games of the season.

Murphy scored his first Tottenham goal in a 2–1 win over Portsmouth on 1 October 2006 after only 39 seconds of the game.

He was unable to establish himself as a regular at Tottenham, but made clear later that despite reports in the media, there was no disagreement between him and Jol.

Fulham took over Murphy's Tottenham contract on 31 August 2007.

He cemented himself as a regular starter, kept his place in the team throughout the season and scored six goals in 43 matches.

One goal, a rare header scored on 11 May 2008, gave Fulham a 1–0 win away at Portsmouth and ensured their Premier League survival.

Following the match, Murphy highlighted manager Roy Hodgson's "key role" in the team's avoiding relegation.

Murphy signed a new one-year contract, with an option for a further year, at the end of the season, and was appointed club captain for the 2008–09 season.

On 9 November 2008, Murphy scored his 100th goal at club level with a penalty kick, as Fulham beat Newcastle United 2–1.

Murphy scored another penalty as, for the first time in 45 years, Fulham beat title-chasing Manchester United at home.

The year's option on Murphy's contract was taken up during the season, but in August 2009, amid reported interest from clubs including Birmingham City and Stoke City, he signed another extension, until June 2011.

Murphy missed two months in the early part of the season with a knee ligament problem, but went on to captain Fulham to their first European final.

After brief spells at Charlton Athletic and Tottenham Hotspur he joined Fulham, which he helped reach the 2010 UEFA Europa League final, and ended his career at Blackburn Rovers.

He served as captain at his last two clubs.

In November 2016, as the United Kingdom football sexual abuse scandal erupted, Murphy also strongly defended Gradi's reputation.