BBC NEWS; Portsmouth FC’s Josh Murphy makes a “sleeping giant” assertion when discussing the Oxford United rejection.
Josh Murphy has provided further explanation for his decision to leave Oxford United for Portsmouth after guiding the U’s back to the Championship.
The winger, who joined Oxford on a two-year deal in the summer of 2022 after being released by Cardiff City, battled for form and frequent involvement at the Kassam Stadium until settling down under new manager Des Buckingham last November.
Murphy was a key player for Oxford in the second part of the 2023/24 season, finishing with 10 goals and five assists in all competitions.
His finest achievement, of course, came in May’s play-off final against Bolton Wanderers, where he scored twice at Wembley Stadium to lead Oxford to a 2-0 victory and Buckingham’s side’s long-awaited return to English football’s second tier.
According to sources, Oxford provided Murphy with a new agreement within 24 hours after his promotion to the Championship. Additional offers were made before Oxford made a final offering, which would have made Murphy the highest-paid player in the club’s history.
Despite being nearing the end of his contract, the 29-year-old chose to join Portsmouth on a three-year agreement after their promotion under ex-U’s stalwart John Mousinho, a former colleague of Murphy.
Portsmouth’s Josh Murphy gives more perspective to the Oxford United snub
Murphy has explained why he turned down Oxford in favour of a move to the south coast.
Mousinho, a former Norwich City and Cardiff attacker, left Oxford for Portsmouth citing the Fratton Park atmosphere, the club’s stature, and his own vision.
“We played there toward the conclusion of last season, and the atmosphere was simply fantastic. Murphy told Sky Sports, “It felt like a really good fit.”
“I know what the management intended to do. They’re essentially a sleeping monster with big ambitions, and I want to be a part of that journey.
“It’s a new challenge for me here and I’m just really excited to kick on.”
Oxford United has not missed Josh Murphy since his move from Portsmouth.
Portsmouth, who were promoted to the Championship as winners and played a progressive and attacking style under Mousinho, had the greatest expectations for the next season.
However, they have had the most difficult start to the new season, although Oxford and Derby County have both had successful starts.
Oxford is now 11th in the table, having won three of their first seven games, in sharp contrast to Portsmouth’s poor start.
John Mousinho must undoubtedly seek to an ex-Oxford United player to soothe Portsmouth FC’s remaining fears. View
Summer addition Josh Murphy might bring a much-needed lift to Portsmouth, who have struggled thus far in the new season.
Pompey had already faced all three newly relegated sides (Burnley, Sheffield United, and Luton Town), as well as four promotion hopefuls (Leeds United, Middlesbrough, Sunderland, and league leaders West Bromwich Albion).
Unsurprisingly, they have not won any of their first seven games of the season and are now in 23rd place, however they will be looking to move up the table with future games against Stoke City and Oxford.
| EFL Championship bottom-six standings, as of October 1 | ||||
| Pos. | Team | P | GD | Pts |
| 19th | Luton Town | 7 | -5 | 7 |
| 20th | Stoke City | 7 | -7 | 6 |
| 21st | Coventry City | 7 | -5 | 5 |
| 22nd | Preston North End | 7 | -8 | 5 |
| 23rd | Portsmouth | 7 | -6 | 4 |
| 24th | Cardiff City | 7 | -17 | 1 |
It will be fascinating to watch how Murphy is received by the traveling U’s supporters at Fratton Park on Saturday, since they have not missed the winger much thus far.
Murphy, who missed the start of the season due to injury, has real Championship pedigree and should prove to be a wise acquisition by Pompey as the season progresses, but Oxford have had a great start and the likes of Malcom Ebiowei, Tyler Goodrham, and Siriki Dembele may end up filling his void quite well.
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