Valley is Perfect Setting for Murphy to Take Starring Role

It's little wonder that Danny Murphy was sceptical when his significant other was approached to write a column entitled 'The Footballer's Wife'. The idea came about through a friend of a friend, but even so Murphy was dubious. 'I know football,' he says, articulating each word with a tone of profound suspicion.

As it turns out, his wife, the actress Joanna Taylor, writes a newspaper column that is bright, breezy and not too incriminating - he checks it first. One of the things Murphy is most proud of, apart from the fact her knowledge of football has been well honed since they met, is the way she dispels some of the stereotypes of the flashy, trashy Premiership lifestyle.

'People watch Footballers' Wives and Dream Team and seriously take it in!' he shakes his head. 'Life isn't as glamorous as everyone makes out. Football being in the spotlight that it is, when one or two behave badly we're all tarnished. It's ironic when you see the state of Andrew Flintoff - good luck to him, he's done amazingly and was man of the series, so you go out and drink yourself stupid, but if that was Stevie G or David Beckham, oh my God would there be an outcry.'

Perspective is something Murphy has taken time to develop in his career. As a youngster he caught the eye with a hat-trick for England at the World Youth Cup and the journey that took him from Crewe to Liverpool was a whirl. When he discovered the club he loved had accepted a bid from Charlton Athletic just over a year ago, Murphy was shaken up in the process of settling down south.

The upheaval of a big footballing move is often underestimated by supporters wowed by multimillion pound fees and heavyweight reputations.

'Fans expect you to click into gear straight away and it isn't that easy,' says Murphy. 'I moved from a club I'd been at seven years and supported all my life, where I felt part of the furniture, to a place where I didn't know what to expect. People think footballers just tend to follow the money, but there is emotion as well. Looking back, I didn't deal with it that well. I didn't take time to sit back and be upset with the fact I'd left. I shut off the emotion completely. Everyone was saying, "Are you all right?" and I was saying, "Yeah, fine." But maybe I wasn't. You live and learn.'

By his own admission, Murphy's character bonds his state of mind to his footballing form. It is no coincidence that one year on he feels fully integrated, happily settled and a different player. He is performing handsomely enough for his manager Alan Curbishley to describe him as 'the best midfielder in the country by a mile'.

Curbishley has duly pressed the case for an international recall. 'It's nice he's given me plaudits, but he wasn't the other day at Birmingham when I lost a couple of balls in front of him!' Murphy chuckles.

The fierce self-critic in Murphy struggles to take his England prospects seriously. 'I tend to think I've missed the boat a little bit. My chance came when I was in the squad for the 2002 World Cup and unfortunately I broke a foot and had to come home. I don't think, even if I play to the maximum of my ability every week, I am going to push my way into the team, with Becks, Stevie G and Lamps in there. They've cemented their places. To be honest if I was the manager I'd put those three in ahead of me.'

But isn't there an argument that the midfield balance is wrong and he might redress that? 'Maybe, but it's not going to happen. Sven has always been straight with me and he gave me my caps, but I won't be keeping my eye on too many squads.'

In the post-Northern Ireland inferno, Curbishley's name emerged as one of a group of English managers put forward by those desperate for Eriksson to be replaced by a home-grown coach. Murphy believes Curbishley has the right qualities, both in his man management, and his tactical nous.

What about the lack of continental experience though? 'Ideally, if you are going to be England manager it would help,' Murphy says. 'But how do you get that experience? You need to be given a chance by a bigger club to manage in Europe. Liverpool gave the job to Rafael Benitez instead of a guy like Alan because of his European pedigree. But sooner or later one of the big clubs might give someone like Alan, Sam Allardyce or Steve Bruce a chance, and that will benefit English football. Don't get me wrong, the foreign managers have been great - Gerard Houllier was an inspiration for me. But now maybe it has gone full circle and it's time to see if we can produce some top coaches of our own.'

For all his support of English coaching, Murphy is indebted to Houllier for mending a few bad habits and encouraging him to flourish. Phil Thompson used to call Murphy 'Gerard's star pupil' and the rapport made a big impression. Murphy values the relationship between player and manager highly.

'When I moved that was a big factor. Benitez made it pretty clear I wasn't in his plans, so when you meet a manager like Alan who makes you feel wanted, massages your ego, wants you in his team, it makes you feel good. Individually I have a different pressure here at Charlton, a pressure to be one of the players who takes responsibility and carries the team. That's part of the reason I came here.

'I had to reassess my priorities. Being a regular and being established means a lot to me at this stage of my career, it makes my everyday life better. I'm a happy person when I'm playing football, I'm miserable when I'm not.'

That is healthy compensation for the fact he misses big European nights, the passion of Merseyside derbies, the madness of scoring matchwinners against Manchester United and a handful of medals. 'I am happy with what I achieved and that made it easier to move on. I don't have to prove anything to anyone,' he says.

He is now firmly motivated to help Charlton reach Europe, a feat he reckons is within reach of a squad who have started the season high on confidence and quality. There would be no objections to Joanna writing about that.