Chris Hughton believes having his tried and tested coaches alongside him this summer will be a head start to getting Norwich City firing next season.

The new Canaries boss was unveiled earlier this month, and arrives at Carrow Road with assistant Colin Calderwood and first team coach Paul Trollope from Birmingham City in tow.

The trio is currently expected to join forces with Paul Lambert's old management team of Ian Culverhouse and Gary Karsa in City's extended backroom set-up.

Hughton had also been linked with the vacancy at Premier League rivals West Bromwich Albion, who were reportedly less keen on attracting his right-hand men.

He now has a bit of time before welcoming his new players back from their breaks for the start of pre-season training early next month, and he admitted he is glad to have Calderwood and Trollope by his side again.

'It was important – not the most important thing, I'd have to say, but yes – it was important and it allows me to start on a footing that my coaches know,' said Hughton.

'They know how I work. Colin has worked with me for a longer period of time; Paul Trollope has worked with me over the last season and we certainly had enough games last year and had to do enough work last season that he is very voiced in the way that I work.

'So that was very important for me, because what we all want to do is we all want to start off on a good footing. We all want to do well and if you have got that familiarity around you I think that gives you a little bit of a head start.'

The trio saw Birmingham through more than 60 games last season as the 2010-11 Carling Cup winners enjoyed a successful Europa League campaign that took them into the group stages, on top of the usual 46-match Championship rigours.

And while Hughton saw the benefits of so many competitive outings, he acknowledged he will be grateful for the extra headroom offered by a 38-game Premier League term.

'The European campaign we had last season was the reason we played so many games and strangely enough, I think that actually helped the squad rather than hindered it – but it was an awful lot of games,' added Hughton.

'What fewer games does do as a coach and as a manager, it allows you to assess the games and allows you to close down the games and look at things a little more clearly perhaps.

'When last season we were playing on average two games a week right through, then most of your time during the weeks is spent in preparation for the team, playing games, recovery and then preparation again.

'So certainly I am looking forward to playing fewer games, which also allows you have more working time with the players – and that's important.'

• The Canaries' Premier League fixtures for the 2012-13 season are released this morning at 9am – visit www.pinkun.com to see who the Canaries will face.