Leeds United v Brentford: '˜Unbelievable' Saiz crucial to aim of ending barren run in 2018

The 40-year-old succeeded Thomas Christiansen as head coach earlier this month and has steered United to two draws and a defeat from his first three games.

However, while Leeds still await their first victory of 2018, Cooper believes improvements have already been spotted by the squad.

“Mentality,” replied the Hull-born defender when asked about the biggest impact made by Heckingbottom in his 19 days at the helm.

“He gives us a freedom to go and be confident, and he wants us to pass the ball.

“The training has really stepped up, the intensity in training has really stepped up and I think the lads are benefiting from that.

“We are starting games well, whereas in the past we hadn’t. It has been really good, training is to a high standard and if it is not up there he will let us know.”

Heckingbottom will try to claim that elusive first win as Leeds head coach at the fourth attempt this weekend as Brentford come to Elland Road.

The Bees, one of the more under-rated teams in the second tier, sit four points and one place above United in the table.

Dean Smith’s side will be looking to make it a hat-trick of victories inside a week after making light work of Birmingham City and Sunderland.

“It matters what day you catch Brentford on, to be fair,” said Cooper when asked what threat the Londoners will pose.

“If you catch them on one of them (good days) it is going to be a tough day at the office. But they are coming to Elland Road and we have got to really enforce ourselves on the game.”

Leeds will be buoyed by battling 2-2 draws against Bristol City and Derby County, plus the return from suspension of Samuel Saiz.

On the Spaniard, Cooper added: “We know what the little man can do.

“He is unbelievable with the ball and he gives that drive forward.

“Defences are terrified of him, to be honest, and you can see that when he does drive at people. Him being back (from a six-game ban) is a big lift for us. Now that he is back, hopefully, we can go on and get a few more good results.

“Against Derby, Samu changed the game when he came on, he has done very well and we have missed him.”

For Cooper, Wednesday’s draw at Pride Park marked his return from a second suspension of the season.

His red card against Cardiff City on February 3 led to the Hull-born defender sitting out the derby defeat at Sheffield United and then last Sunday’s 2-2 draw with Bristol City.

It was a mixed return with Cooper’s raking cross-field pass a major feature of the move that led to Pierre-Michel Lasogga’s opener.

The flipside, however, came in first-half stoppage time when it was the Leeds captain’s miscued header, together with Laurens De Bock having gone AWOL at left back, that allowed Anders Weimann to race clear and equalise.

More defensive frailty was evident when Derby pulled level for a second time through former Huddersfield Town loanee Kasey Palmer at the death, as several opportunities to clear weren’t taken.

“We have to stop conceding,” added Cooper. “We are a young group but we are an experienced group. There is a fair amount of Championship experience in there, along with the lads that have come in.

“I don’t like to blame people. You have only got a split second to react in games and it is instinct. Sometimes, you get away with them ones (like Wednesday). But, every time we seem to be making a mistake at the minute, it seems to be getting punished and it is really hard to take.

“Earlier on in the season we were maybe getting away with a few of them but it is what it is. We have just got to take the positives, we will do. There will be a thorough analysis on what we need to improve on.

“We need to improve at our concentration and we will do and we have just got to work really hard. This group is willing to learn. We will go through it again and we will improve again on Saturday.”

Pablo Hernandez is a major doubt after suffering a hamstring strain in the draw at Derby but Saiz and Alioski, who combined so magnificently for Leeds’s second goal, are pushing for a start after both made a big impact from the bench.