Midfielder Luke Murphy feels the footballing philosophy of new head coach Garry Monk will complement the strengths of the current United squad.

Monk has already outlined his desire to bring “aggressive, front-foot football” to Elland Road next season, adding “I like to play possession football – but always with a purpose”.

Murphy was full of praise for United’s appointment of the former Swansea City boss and believes his preferred style of play will prove to be a hit among the players, who are currently preparing to return to training under Monk at Thorp Arch later this month.

“I was really happy to hear the news,” said Murphy. “He’s got a very good reputation from what he did at Swansea.

“I don’t know him personally but I’ve heard a lot of good things about him. I’ve got friends who have played under him and they speak very highly of him.

“In my opinion, it’s a very good appointment and hopefully he can do a good job for us next season.

“He likes to pass it and keep the ball on the floor. I think we’ve got the players in our squad who will suit that.

“I think it’s a good match and hopefully the squad and the manager will complement each other well.

“Everyone will be trying to make an impression to put themselves in his thoughts to make the starting line-up come the start of the season.”

Murphy is now relishing pre-season getting underway in the coming weeks after recently returning to United’s training base to make an early start on his own fitness programme.

“I’ve had a holiday, I’ve had a rest mentally and physically and I’ve come back into Thorp Arch,” the 26-year-old said. “It doesn’t feel that long ago since we were training here.

“The break has been nice but you do get bored, so you look forward to coming back in and getting started again.

“It’s important to keep yourself ticking over – there are four or five lads in today doing the same.

“That’s the modern-day game now - everyone comes back in good shape because we all know it will be tough come the start of July.

“If you come in and you haven’t been doing anything at all throughout the off-season, then you’ll definitely feel it.

“There’s probably a risk of injuries as well because your body’s not used to that workload. It’s good to keep yourself in good shape during the off-season – I’m sure all the lads will have done that and there won’t be any problems there.”