The Championship side are reportedly willing to let the midfielder move on during this window.
Leeds’ Luke Murphy
HITC Sport reported earlier in the month that Leeds United were willing to let Luke Murphy leave Elland Road during this window. And while leaving the path clear for him to go is the right decision, the Whites must also accept that he has the potential to become the latest man to prove a major success elsewhere having struggled at Leeds.
Murphy arrived having previously cemented himself as one of the brightest prospects in League One with Crewe Alexandra. And the early signs certainly suggested that United had done a great bit of business as he scored the stoppage-time winner on his debut for the club against Brighton.
However, his time in Yorkshire has been hampered by both injury and inconsistency. There is no denying that at his best, he could inspire a side towards the promotion picture in the division, but he has failed to make more than 37 Championship appearances in any of his three full seasons with the club, so his best has not been seen anywhere near frequently enough.
His chances of success have not been helped by the large number of midfielders that have been with the Peacocks since his arrival, including a cluster of exciting academy graduates that have surpassed him in the pecking order.
Murphy has made just one appearance under new Leeds manager Garry Monk
And with Kalvin Phillips and Ronaldo Vieira featuring prominently under Garry Monk – while Murphy’s sole appearance of the new campaign came in the League Cup win over Luton – it appears that the time may be right for the 26-year-old to move on before his career stagnates.
But while moving on may be the best option for both the player and the club, it is possible that letting Murphy go could prove to be a decision that United regret in hindsight.
In recent years, United have seen several players, who had either struggled for form over a prolonged period of time or had not been given a chance to properly show what they could do, move on and ultimately flourish elsewhere.
The likes of Steve Morison and Nicky Ajose are shining in the third tier currently, and while the former perhaps had enough of a chance to impress, the latter was certainly written off too quickly and is now proving that elsewhere.
Tom Lees has been fantastic since joining Sheffield Wednesday
Perhaps the biggest inspiration to Murphy, should he end up leaving, will be Tom Lees.
The centre-back clearly had huge amounts of potential when he was beginning to hold down a first-team spot. However, frequent mistakes meant that his move to Sheffield Wednesday in 2014 was not met with huge amounts of disappointment, but rather acceptance that his game had not come on as much as many had expected.
But his move to Hillsborough has seen Lees definitely get his career back on track, and nearly saw him become a Premier League player last season as the Owls reached the play-off final.
So while Luke Murphy’s departure may not be met with much sadness among Leeds supporters if anything does happen during the final hours of the window, it should not surprise anyone if a move proves to be the turning point in the midfielder’s career that he is unlikely to enjoy if he stays at Elland Road.
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