Teemu Pukki’s explosive start to the season has come as no surprise to the main competitor for his shirt.

Summer arrival Josip Drmic has been forced to watch from the sidelines as the flying Finn plundered five goals from his first three Premier League starts.

The Swiss international is currently on the recovery trail from a hamstring injury picked up on pre-season duty, while Pukki leads the scoring charts in the top flight.

Drmic, who arrived on a free transfer from Borrussia Monchengladback, said: "It does not surprise me at all how well he is doing - he is one of Norwich's best players and he works very hard.

"He does everything for the team and has really shown his quality - I hope he continues that way."

And while the pair have their eyes firmly trained on the same shirt, the City new boy has no hard feelings towards the red hot striker.

He added: "Teemu is my friend and my team-mate and has been a big, big part of settling me in to England.

"I do not see him as an opponent or a competitor. He knows all about switching to English football from the Bundesliga so has been a big help for me."

With his own injury trouble and boss Daniel Farke's preference for playing with a lone striker, Drmic is likely to need some patience, but insists he is ready to take his opportunity when it arrives.

"I feel fit, I feel healthy and should be fully ready this week," he said. "I can train and I can play, but we just have had to be careful.

"I think the switch [to English football] was quite hard to begin with, the training is much more intense here than I was used to in Germany so that took some getting used to.

"However, all I can do is work hard and stay positive.

"It was also tough coming to a new country, but you just have to go out, meet people and try new things.

"Closing the door is never the right thing to do."

Drmic hit a hat-trick in pre-season action at Luton Town, but injury has limited him to just a short cameo at Anfield so far.

However, this evening's League Cup clash at Crawley Town is set to prove too soon for the Swiss in his road to recovery.