Carlos Carvalhal has suggested that he has been impressed with Jos Luhukay's start to life at Sheffield Wednesday.
In December, Wednesday announced that they had parted company with Carvalhal and the Portuguese was eventually replaced by Luhukay, who has lost just one of his first eight matches in charge at Hillsborough.
Four of those fixtures have ended in draws, but Carvalhal has claimed that his former club have already made progress under the Dutchman.
At a press conference, the 52-year-old told reporters: "They have a different manager and different ideas, different formation, a different dynamic. The manager is still living with the injuries of some important players.
"I think they are progressing and when they have some important players back they will be one of the strongest teams in the competition."
Wednesday currently sit in 15th place in the Championship table.