Clement’s firefighting masterclass dragged City from relegation danger to a top 10 finish last season, but the Belgian is at the wrong end of the table again approaching his 12-month anniversary.

Norwich’s abject 1-0 home defeat to Portsmouth was an eighth league loss in 11, and sparked fury from some sections of the Carrow Road support.

“I really fell in love with this area, with this club, with the people here. There's so much family feeling here, so much good people that you want to make happy,” he said.

“And I told you guys also, that's my fuel in this job, to see everybody happy, and I got a lot of fuel last season. Much less now, but it makes me more determined to get that back because this is a club of so many good people that you want to see the joy back and the happy days. So all my focus is on that every moment that I'm awake.

“We said that one year ago. It's about what you show on the pitch. You cannot do it with words or what's happening behind the scenes, or that you have much less injuries than before or that there are so many things positively changing in this club.

"Fans want to see wins because they pay good money to come to see the games. They have a whole week of work, and they're proud about the club. And here that feeling is extra, because this is a club of a big community, a big area.

"I understand that. I understand the frustration. I can only tell them that I will work even harder than we did last season to turn it around.”

Clement’s three decades in the game as a player and now well-travelled head coach have taught him the biggest lesson in adversity.

“There's only one way, and that's to work hard, to stay positive, and to push your luck to the right side, and then it comes back,” he said.

“I had all sort of moments in my career, and I've always been a fighter, and I will fight really hard for this club to get everything back.

“I'm gutted for the boys, for everybody in the club, because I know how hard they've been working all these months, and I know I'm demanding also to ask a lot of them; everybody, players, staff, to do a lot of things.

"I'm really convinced also that the quality is in the group to turn it around and to make better results than we have shown now in these first 11 games.”