Former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy can claim to have been well ahead of the curve with regards to one of the Premier League’s breakout talents.
Seven years ago, Murphy watched on in awe as a self-assured 18-year-old swaggered and strutted his way through the Tottenham Hotspur midfield.
A ‘brilliant’ young talent who’s ‘ability to run with the ball was amazing’.
Flash forward to March 2025, and the very same Morgan Gibbs-White who Danny Murphy highlighted as a potential future superstar is more than making good on the potential he showed in the Old Gold of Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Gibbs-White has been the driving force behind Nottingham Forest’s Champions League charge. And with Liverpool eyeing up a summer move alongside the soon-to-be de-throned Manchester City – TBR Football reports – that a deep-pocketed, ambitious Forest side view their talismanic England international as a £100 million footballer comes as no real surprise.
Danny Murphy has one ‘question’ as Liverpool eye Nottingham Forest star Morgan Gibbs-White
TBR add that Gibbs-White, who has caught Liverpool’s eye while scoring five goals and assisting nine more from his all-action attacking midfield role, will be offered a new contract at the City Ground.
Whether he accepts, or looks to secure himself a move to one of the more established Premier League powerhouses, remains to be seen.
Murphy, an FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup winner under Gerard Houlier at Anfield back in 2001, has no doubt about Gibbs-White’s talent. In fact, he was one of the Stafford-born playmaker’s earliest backers.
The question is, however, could Gibbs-White adapt from being the ‘main man’ at Nottingham Forest to a more supporting role in Liverpool’s ensemble cast?
“He’s just got it all. He’s shining in that team and it suits him being the main man,” Murphy tells talkSPORT. “The only question you’d have is playing under bigger pressure and having to do it more consistently.”
Alongside Gibbs-White, Liverpool are reportedly in the mix for Bayer Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz. The silky Juventus number ten Kenan Yildiz is another with Anfield admirers.
Gibbs-White ‘terrific’ and offers work-rate Arne Slot likes
Gibbs-White, however, has the added advantage of a proven track record in English football.
Murphy highlights the relentless work ethic which would undoubtedly appeal to Arne Slot. Gibbs-White also feels a more natural fit for Liverpool’s 4-3-3 formation than Wirtz or Yildiz, two more mercurial but perhaps less durable operators.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 1 |  LiverpoolLiverpool | 31 | 22 | 7 | 2 | 72 | 30 | 42 | 73 |
| 2 |  ArsenalArsenal | 31 | 17 | 11 | 3 | 56 | 26 | 30 | 62 |
| 3 |  Nottm ForestNottingham Forest | 31 | 17 | 6 | 8 | 51 | 37 | 14 | 57 |
| 4 |  ChelseaChelsea | 31 | 15 | 8 | 8 | 54 | 37 | 17 | 53 |
“He’s terrific with his back to goal,” Murphy explains. “[Gibbs-White possesses] great skill, he can score, a good passer. He takes risks with his passes and through balls.
“The great advantage with someone like Gibbs-White is he wants to do the work without the ball and you don’t always get attacking players who want to.
“He can play centre midfield. I’ve seen him play it in a two. He is phenomenal, he’s just really unlucky at the moment that England have got so many good players in a similar position. I think he could play in any team.”
Former Liverpool striker Peter Crouch is a paid-up member of the Morgan Gibbs-White fanclub, too. He, like Murphy, spotted his talent while a teenager at Wolves and feels Nottingham Forest have themselves ‘the real deal’ these days.
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