One to Watch – Glenn Murray

Name: Glenn Murray
Date of Birth: 25/09/1983
Previous clubs: Carlisle United, Stockport County (L), Rochdale (L), Rochdale, Brighton and Hove Albion, Crystal Palace, Reading (L), Bournemouth.
Apps (goals): 453 (164)

It doesn`t get any easier for QPR on Tuesday afternoon as they face one of the toughest fixtures in league on the back of five straight defeats when they head to automatic promotion-chasing Brighton and Hove Albion, who have picked up eight wins from 11 matches on home soil, while conceding just six goals in that time.

After play-off semi-final defeats in three of the last four Championship seasons, this looks like it could finally be the Seagulls` year, thanks in large part due to the return of striker Glenn Murray to the club on a season-long loan from Bournemouth, having departed the club in the summer of 2011 for fierce rivals Crystal Palace.

The 33-year old sits second in the division`s goal-scoring charts behind Dwight Gayle with 14 goals to his name so far this season, eight of which have come in his last eight games, while he has bagged the winner in each of the club`s previous three matches, and he has been particularly deadly at the Amex Stadium with 12 strikes.

Having begun his career with Carlisle, where he took in loans at Stockport County and Rochdale, he joined the latter on a permanent basis in January 2007 after impressing during his temporary spell at the Spotland Stadium, and after 25 goals in 54 league games for the Dale, he signed for Brighton the following January.

It was a considerable outlay from the South Coast club, then in League One, who parted with a reported £300,000 to sign the forward on a three-and-a-half-year deal, considering Murray had not played at that level before, but he settled in quickly, scoring twice on his second start in a 3-0 home win against Crewe Alexandra.

During an injury-hit 2008/2009 campaign, in which he managed to make just 28 appearances in all competitions, Murray still contributed 12 goals to the side, and followed that up with a further 14 goals the next season, before playing a pivotal role in helping Gus Poyet`s men win promotion to the second tier.

In a tough battle with Southampton throughout the 2010/2011 campaign, it was the Seagulls who came out on top, as they finished three points clear of the Saints at the League One summit, with Murray finishing second in the goal-scoring charts behind Peterborough`s Craig Mackail-Smith, finding the net on 22 occasions.

Murray would however not be part of the club`s much anticipated move to the Amex Stadium the following season, instead opting to reject the offer of a new deal to controversially move to fellow Championship rivals Crystal Palace following the end of his deal with the Seagulls, much to the annoyance of the club`s fans.

It proved a difficult first season for Murray in-front of goal with the Eagles as he managed just seven goals in 43 appearances for Dougie Freedman`s men, but after taking some time to adjust to the step up in quality, Murray was on fire the following campaign, during which Palace won promotion to the Premier League.

It was a bittersweet end to the 2012/2013 campaign for the forward, who topped the division`s scoring charts with 30 league goals, and was named in the PFA Championship Team of the Year, however he suffered a serious knee injury in the first leg of the play-off semi-final match against his former club Brighton.

Palace, then under the guidance of Ian Holloway would see off Albion over two legs, before defeating Watford in the final at Wembley, but it would not be until the following February that Murray would take to the field again, making his top-flight debut as he came on for the final 20 minutes of a 3-1 home win over West Brom.

Just two games later, he scored his first Premier League goal from the penalty spot to rescue a point in a 1-1 draw at Swansea, and featured 14 times before the end of the season, and following three outings for the side at the start of the 2012/2015 campaign, he dropped back to the Championship for a loan spell with Reading.

Eight goals for the Royals prior to Christmas saw him return to Selhurst Park in the New Year, and he added a further seven goals to his Premier League tally, including strikes against Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool, but he departed the club at the beginning of the next season for newly-promoted Bournemouth.

Cherries boss Eddie Howe signed the striker for £4million, but he found it hard to nail down a regular starting spot, featuring just six times in the league from the opening whistle for the club, scoring three league goals, including the winner in a famous 1-0 victory against then league Champions Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

With a numerous striking options at his disposal, Howe agreed to Murray`s return to the Seagulls in the summer for the entire 2016/2017 campaign, where regular football has seen the goals flow again at a rapid pace, and with a solid defence and Murray`s contribution up top, they look destined for the Premier League.