Hughton rallies Norwich after heavy loss

Norwich City manager Chris Hughton expects his side to hit back after their 5-2 defeat to Liverpool on Saturday.

The Canaries are still searching for their first Premier League win this season but have three points from their opening six games after three draws.

And, after the heavy loss to Brendan Rodgers’ men, Hughton insists he understands fans’ concerns over his team’s form so far.

“Supporters want to get behind us and they get disappointed when they don’t see the type of performance that we want – all of that is understandable,” Hughton told BBC Radio Norfolk.

“But it’s up to myself and the team to make sure we’re able to bounce back and show the spirit we did after a poor first day of the season.”

Norwich face high-flying London pair Chelsea and Arsenal in their next two fixtures, but Hughton remains confident that his team are not far short of the form which can see them post wins.

“What they (the fans) would have seen in the four previous games is a team that’s been close. Even up at Newcastle (1-0 defeat) we were in the game,” he continued.

“It’s the nature of the game that they saw a completely different performance (against Liverpool).

“The only plus was we managed to be spirited enough to get two goals back. We’ve found it difficult to score goals and possibly that might do us a little bit of good.”

The former Birmingham boss also explained the absence of creative midfielder Wes Hoolahan from his starting line-up against Liverpool.

“I wanted to go four across midfield. I felt the fact we were at home – I wanted to seize the opportunity to be a little more aggressive and play two strikers,” he added.

“With Wes’s quality we know what he can give the team. With Wes in the team you have to adjust that midfield for him. But with what they had in wide areas I felt we needed four across midfield.”