Johannes Hoff Thorup hopes the worst of Anis Ben Slimane's fitness issues are behind him after a productive week for the Norwich City midfielder.

Slimane started in the Canaries' meetings with West Brom and Luton, coming on as a substitute to open his account for the club in a 6-1 midweek mauling of Plymouth Argyle.

That marked a series of positive steps for the Tunisian, whose time at Carrow Road so far has been blighted by minor ailments. His head coach says things are headed in the right direction, however, after the easing of an injury crisis that spread his entire squad thin.

"It should not be a case like that," said Thorup, asked if his charge's problems would need management throughout his City career. "It should be something that we can deal with, especially now that we have more players available.

"He spent the international break well, with rest but also building up the strength again that is needed for the rest of the season. Having more players available gives us better scenarios and solutions, and we have the time to rest players when they need it.

"We could see that he came from Sheffield United with some fitness issues, so we were all aware that it would take some time for him to develop into being fully match-fit week after week after week. But hopefully it's a little bit better now, hopefully we can build him and avoid playing him for all the minutes."

Thorup's trust in Slimane even amid those struggles showed his faith in the 23-year-old, who became a fan favourite quickly after sealing an initial season-long loan deal.

The City boss praised that fast start, aiming for more of the same now that the cavalry has returned.

"I think he started well," Thorup continued. "He did very, very well for us in the beginning, and then of course he had a setback with the injury. Then we played him even though he was maybe not 100pc fit and ready to play, but we had to do it.

"He's a team player, so it was not even something he needed to think about. He was ready to give everything he had. That's positive, but now we are in a better state with the team, so we can take even better and cleverer decisions."