The Leeds midfielder impressed once again during the Yorkshire derby.
Search up and down the Football League (and Premier League) and you’ll struggle to find someone like Luke Murphy.
You’ll struggle, that is, to find someone who is so comfortably and convincingly a first-team player, despite being frozen out of the starting XI earlier in the season.
It’s been a phenomenal turnaround from the Leeds United midfielder and it’s all come through hard work and professionalism.
He was given a second chance by boss Neil Redfearn, of course, but it was up to him to take it. He has – and he is one of, if not the, most improved Leeds player of the campaign.
| Chances Created | Touches | Final-Third Passes | Accurate Passes | Tackles | Minutes Played | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luke Murphy | 3 | 74 | 16 | 46 | 2 | 90 |
| Charlie Taylor | 2 | 54 | 8 | 16 | 3 | 90 |
| Steve Morison | 2 | 47 | 12 | 20 | 1 | 82 |
| Alex Mowatt | 2 | 47 | 10 | 32 | 0 | 71 |
| Rodolph Austin | 1 | 72 | 19 | 47 | 1 | 90 |
| Sam Byram | 1 | 71 | 18 | 47 | 0 | 90 |
| Scott Wootton | 1 | 86 | 14 | 45 | 0 | 90 |
Indeed, as Opta stats show, Murphy shone again during Saturday’s Yorkshire derby, providing another all-round performance against Rotherham from midfield.
The 25-year-old created more chances than any Leeds player and took more touches of the ball than anyone bar Scott Wootton. He also completed 16 passes in the final third and 46 overall, winning two tackles.
As the table shows, he wasn’t the only Leeds star to impress, while Redfearn’s men were still unable to get the goal that would have finished their Championship season with a win.
But Murphy’s form ever since he was reintroduced to the first team at Elland Road has been the most telling. He is as important as anyone at Leeds, which was from from the case some months ago.
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