Town boss Mick McCarthy hopes a shorter summer break will help striker Daryl Murphy get back to the form he showed in 2014/15, when he topped scored in the Championship with 27 goals, after a stop-start 2015/16.

Murphy returned from the European Championships following the Republic of Ireland’s 2-1 round-of-16 defeat to hosts France on Sunday and has been given the first two weeks of pre-season off.

The 33-year-old, who started for Ireland in their final two matches at the tournament, was given three additional weeks off last summer having been away for international friendlies until mid-June.

But he subsequently made a slow start to the season - his first goals were his hat-trick in the 5-2 win at Rotherham on November 7th - and rarely hit the heights he had during the previous campaign, scoring only 10 times.

“Daryl’s back on the Tuesday after we come back from Ireland, July 12th,” McCarthy said. “He’ll be having just over two weeks off, so he doesn’t decondition. He’s not having that long off.

“I spoke to him on Monday and I’ll try and give him some kind of a rest in the season, some break, whether it’s days off.

“I’ve been through what he’s done. It seems a hundred years ago now but in 1988 when I played for Ireland in the European Championships I came back and went to Celtic.

“I had two weeks off and I was flying, but then in September someone pulled the plug out and I didn’t know what had happened to me. I don’t want that to happen to him.

“But last year he came back after the internationals, he had a three-week break, it took him a lot longer to get back and he ended up with an injury, so I think it’s important that he gets back as soon as he can and at least he’s available to start the season, which he wants to do.”

He added: “He needs to be fit, that’s the big thing with Murph. His season was stop-start last year. From coming back from international friendlies and having three weeks off and having to start pre-season late, missing it, missing the start of the season, it was a bit stop-start. That doesn’t help.

“So if he gets a run at it and he starts the season [that should help him to replicate his 2014/15 form].

“And we’ve got to create the chances for him, he can’t be doing it on his own. Let’s hope we do because he was brilliant.”

Meanwhile, former Blues striker Shefki Kuqi is reportedly close to being named the new manager of League One Oldham Athletic, where he played late on his career. The 39-year-old is currently boss and part-owner of Finnish side PK-35 Vantaa.

Photo: Action Images

lightingblue added 06:14 - Jun 30 Personally I can't see him scorning anywhere that amount of goals. His to old now and best of starting g on the bench. Should've sold him to boro. In mick we trust
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WaffleMan added 06:19 - Jun 30 As age goes on I don't see Murphy having another wonder season like he did. I think it's perhaps time we looked in the market for a young and pacey forward which we do not have in Pitman, Murphy or McGoldrick. If only I could say Sears but he's played out of position. Should be a very interesting season for us. Seems as if we are going into the season with the same ideas and expecting different results.

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BrettenhamBlue added 06:22 - Jun 30 As he gets older it takes him longer to recover from injuries and niggles, especially as his game involves jumping up and down for 90 mins trying to latch onto huge hoof balls. I can't see him repeating his form from two years ago. Without a doubt a hugely important player given the way we play. We should be aiming to bring in someone to replace him when he is injured. Paul Miller is finally fully fit and would be available for a small fee. If we continue with the huge punts up field he could prove a significant understudy for Murphy.

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Tufty added 06:38 - Jun 30 Go Murph Proove the wingers wrong
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GiveusaWave added 06:43 - Jun 30 Go on Murphy Back to your goaltastic best
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Mr_Evans added 08:03 - Jun 30 Goalscoring shouldn't be an issue for us - Murphy, Sears, McGoldrick and Pitman are expected to get anywhere between 10-15 goals each throughout the season. Unfortuabtly it's our defence that lets us down. Up until the final game of the season we had conceeded more goals than any other top half team in the Championship.
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LondonBlue99 added 08:33 - Jun 30 If anyone watched the Euros, I personally feel Murphy could become more of a attacking midfielder similar to Rooney, holding the ball up and then distributing it appropriately. Could really help in getting rid of our hoof ball style.
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jas0999 added 08:37 - Jun 30 The reality is Murphy wanted to go to the a Euros, so much so he and Mick decided he wouldn't play for us in order to stay fit, despite he fact the club pays his wages. Therefore, two weeks off seems reasonable particularly after the extremely slow start he had last season. Let's hope he recovers form and scores a few early doors for us. Thought he did very well at the Euros despite not scoring.

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brittaniaman added 09:01 - Jun 30 Just wondered who is going to supply the crosses for Murphy and co. to score from ???????
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Radlett_blue added 09:04 - Jun 30 If we're going to rely on a 33 year old to be our main target man in a team that likes to play the ball forward early, prepare for a poor season. Yes, we have 3 other strikers, but none come close to doing what Murph can do at his best. His decline is part of the reason why we declined last season.
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Seasider added 09:31 - Jun 30 Thought Murph played pretty well in the Euros,and certainly deserves time off which he must have,as he said he only had a week away before the tournament. Lets hope Mick does give him a bit of time off during the season,because he has experienced this burn out himself as stated above.,and we must not forget that he is approaching the twilight of his career.Darly that is,not his Manager;although wait a minute!!!

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brian_a_mul added 09:32 - Jun 30 Murphy still has it. He was brilliant against Italy and France. He really bullied them and was unlucky not to get a goal or two. He linked up very well with Long and the wide players that were in support. MM knows he needs to manage his game time to get the best out of him. If he is fully fit and fresh he will be our #1 striker. With Didz, Bish, Dozzell, Freddie etc we have the players to link up with Murph and be a real threat to any team in this league. There are very few strikers out there that can do what Murph does.

5

Blue_Heath added 09:57 - Jun 30 Unfortunately, he is a necessity for the style of football we play. His wonder season as history shows was a one off. I'd hope that we change style and use him as a plan b from the bench if needs be.
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TR11BLU added 10:18 - Jun 30 “I spoke to him on Monday and I'll try and give him some kind of a rest in the season, some break, whether it's days off. How about a couple of hours at 3.00pm every Saturday Mick? You could go with him... Hes past it, get rid and we can maybe move on from hoof ball
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londonben added 10:43 - Jun 30 I actually think ages isn't so much an issue when it comes to Murph scoring...his hot streak was largely down to his incredible finishing that season, his shooting was just so on point. He's never been about pace, he's been about bullying defenders, working space for himself and burying it in the corners...the only thing missing last season was the finishing accuracy. I think a lot of that was down to confidence, he had a slow start and the pressure built up. I reckon if he starts the season fit and gets a couple of early goals, there's no reason why he couldn't have another golden year.

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cats_whiskers added 10:48 - Jun 30 Have a break. Have a "KitKat" and why not! Murphy and McGoldrick have become so very suspect 'fitness wise' so it's - Lucky for those 2 this isn't Africa, or there would be "Vultures" circling above them.
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essextractorboy93 added 10:52 - Jun 30 He's such a solid striker at this level, brilliant in the air and looked decent against Italy and France! Anyone saying "we should have sold him to Boro" is crazy, can you imagine the uproar had we sold the Championship's top scorer to promotion rivals?! His goal scoring record for us is good! Was our joint top scorer in the league last year and is different to the other strikers we have. Will play a big part this coming season.

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TimmyH added 11:52 - Jun 30 How does that work then Mick?...he's 33 years old (and now probably past his best, although he played well in the Italy game but that's just 1 game) and needs as much rest between now and late July/early August as possible. Mick clutching at straws that he's going to score anywhere near the goals he did in 2014/15 I'm afraid. Next story will be about Bish and how we missed him last season and hoping he'll remain fit and get the midfield going.

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runningout added 12:10 - Jun 30 all our Strikers need to sharpen up.. my Grandma is more ruthless, and she's not with us anymore
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SamWhiteUK added 13:07 - Jun 30 Topped scored?
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hoppy added 13:13 - Jun 30 Tufty, Not sure why you blame the wingers? Not getting enough crosses in?
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chorltonskylineblue added 13:56 - Jun 30 Murph was the target/hold-up play man for Ireland in the last two games at the Euros because Walters wasn't fit. He should play a similar role for us, but I'm not sure we have a 'Shane Long' type to feed off him. Sears fits that bill, but Mick won't play him through the middle. Pitman doesn't fit that mould for me. He's a good finisher don't get me wrong, but he doesn't seem to gel with Murphy. I think Pitman prefers a strong creative midfield and wingers playing stuff in and around the box that he can latch on to. More of a poacher really.

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markytitfc66 added 15:53 - Jun 30 He's not even played 2 full games since the season ended! Burn out? Don't make me laugh
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Toronto_Tractor added 03:01 - Jul 1 I liken this to slave labour. How on earth will he cope?
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