Fulham captain Danny Murphy, who has led the Londoners on a fairytale adventure through Europe, knows the Dutchman from their time together at Tottenham Hotspur where Moniz worked with former manager Martin Jol.
"He was a good coach and someone I worked quite a lot with at Tottenham; the lads liked him a lot," Murphy said after training on Wednesday.
"It's different being a manager even if it is only for a short space of time but I'd be very surprised if the players at Hamburg don't have a good relationship with Ricardo because that's the type of guy he is.
"As for a tactician and what he might be thinking, I wouldn't have a clue but I'd be amazed if he wasn't anything other than attack-minded," added Murphy.
Moniz was appointed caretaker coach of the German side after Bruno Labbadia was shown the door following Hamburg's 5-1 defeat by Hoffenheim in the Bundesliga on Sunday.
Murphy said he had not even realised Moniz was at Hamburg until he bumped into him before the goalless first leg in the German port city.
"It was a complete shock. He had a bit of a different haircut and we kind of smiled and had a catch-up. He's a good guy and I've always spoken highly of him," said the former England midfielder.
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"The only thing I can be sure of is that their players like him because he's that kind of guy. I just hope he maybe has some bizarre tactical plan for them on Thursday that goes horribly wrong."
After savouring success with Liverpool, the club he won the UEFA Cup with in 2001 and who could be Fulham's final opponents on May 12, Murphy has enjoyed every minute of the London team's improbable run through Europe under manager Roy Hodgson.
"If you looked in a betting shop at the beginning of the Europa League campaign we'd have been nowhere," he said.
"If I'm honest I think people within the club thought 'If we can get through the group stages we've done well'. That's because we're realists.
"You're appreciative of it more, for sure," added the 33-year-old of the sort of run he thought was well behind him.
"At Liverpool you just assume each year's going to be another final but as you get older you realise that's not the case and you do have to enjoy these trips.
"Each time we've gone away ... I've tried to enjoy the experience, not knowing if it was going to be your last adventure in Europe," said Murphy.
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