Newcastle United star breaks silence on Manchester City absence amid injury concerns

There was one noticeable absence from Newcastle United’s squad as they lined up for their 1-0 defeat at the Etihad last night.

Jacob Murphy was not in attendance as the Magpies took on the Premier League champions which initially led to many concerned fans as the winger missed a chunk of pre-season thanks to injury.

Despite this, the 28-year-old made an impact off the bench last week when the Toon thrashed Aston Villa 5-, with Murphy assisting new-signing Harvey Barnes’ first goal for the club.

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However the footballer provided an update just as the match kicked off. Posting to his Instagram story, Murphy shared a photo of himself watching his teammates on a laptop in a hospital room. But fear not, alongside the photo he wrote: ‘Come on the boys!,’ complete with a black and white heart and a pregnant woman emoji.

It seems Murphy and his partner have just welcomed- or are about to welcome- a second child, forcing the lifetimeToon fan to miss the club’s second game of the season.

All going well, it’s expected the footballer will be back in time for United’s home game against Liverpool.

All that’s left to say is congratulations to Newcastle United’s resident joker!