Neil Redfearn feels the Derby County players are clearly putting in a shift for Chris Powell, but the former Leeds United head coach still expects the Whites to take something from the iPro Stadium when they head there for a Championship fixture after the international break.
Nigel Pearson was recently suspended from his role as manager by Derby, with Powell stepping in to fill his shoes. Under Powell, the Rams have won at Cardiff City and drawn at Reading.
Redfearn feels that Powell's experience and the fact the players are willing to work for him means it will be a different Derby side that Leeds will face than would have been the case if Pearson was still in his post.
The ex-Leeds boss said on Radio Yorkshire: "They've had a couple of results since Pearson left and to be fair to Chris Powell, he's an experienced manager, he's managed at Charlton and Huddersfield, so he'll have the respect of the players.
"And they've obviously shown that they want to play for him because they've had two decent results", the former midfielder continued.
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"I think it will be a different Derby County now that Leeds play."
But despite Derby's improvement, Redfearn does expect Leeds to take something from their trip to the iPro Stadium, especially as boss Garry Monk has made the Whites a tougher team to beat in recent weeks.
"I still expect Leeds to go there and get something because I think Leeds are playing well and are hard to beat", he explained.
"I think they've got that doggedness and resilience at the back which maybe they didn't have."
Leeds have won five of their last six games in all competitions, while they also won 2-1 on their last visit to Derby, in August last year.
