Leeds United: Central defender Bamba will again captain the Whites this season

Bamba has captained the side since his arrival from Palermo but the 31-year-old is not guaranteed to start given the presence of strong centre-backs Liam Cooper and Kyle Bartley.

Summer signing Bartley has looked impressive since joining on loan from Monk’s former club Swansea City while Cooper has become a firm favourite since signing from Chesterfield in 2014. Bamba was also forced to start several games from the bench last season with preference given to Giuseppe Bellusci who has since left on a season long loan to Empoli.

There was speculation that Monk may therefore opt to install a new captain – particularly given the arrival of experienced ‘keeper Rob Green – but Monk revealed: “Sol is obviously captain from last season and I think he does very well with that role so I see no reason to change it.

“But I also have a group of ‘leaders’ that work from within on a daily basis. But of course Sol was the captain from last year and I see no reason to change that. I think he does very well at that job and has a good relationship with the group which is important as a captain, so that’s what it will be from the start of the season.”