Hull City boss Steve Bruce is envious of the club that gave him his shot at the big time.

Bruce is holding up Norwich as the perfect example for his newly-promoted club to try and emulate in their own attempts at Premier League consolidation.

The Tigers' boss believes Norwich's impressive summer outlay on eight new players underlines what can be achieved in a relatively short period of time.

'If we can run our club the way they do with their support, that's got to be our benchmark,' he said. 'They have a wonderful support, and they're a really well-run club, a good family club, which people enjoy being in the Premier League.

'I hope we can be as successful as what they have been over the last few years. Norwich and Southampton are doing their best to try and bridge that gap if they can. Make no mistake, with the resources that the big clubs have got and the squads they've got, it is very, very difficult.

'Norwich have spent big so it just shows what you can achieve in a couple of years. They've been able to invest in their squad and, as I've said repeatedly, if we can run our club like Norwich then I'll be very happy to do so. They're a club that's not far off our size and they're proving that you can make a fist of it. Why can't it be us? I wish I could spend £15m on a centre-forward but that's not possible so we've got to cut our cloth.'

Bruce has recruited Tottenham duo Tom Huddlestone and Jake Livermore and both could be in line for full debuts against the Canaries after featuring in the second period of Hull's opening day 2-0 defeat at Chelsea.

'It would have been a big ask to throw them straight in at Chelsea but the two lads showed what they're capable of when coming on,' he said. 'They will give us a big hand. You could see that know-how and calmness on the ball.They've got to work as hard as any of the other midfielders to make sure they get into the side but there was plenty of promise from them. They'll be two very good additions I'm sure.'

Bruce admits he still retains plenty of affection for the Canaries after getting what he still labels his first big break in the game under City's League Cup-winning mentor Ken Brown back in the 1980s.

'I always say that Norwich was the one real big club that really give me a chance,' he said. 'Everybody associates me with Manchester United, but Norwich was the one. Mel Machin and Ken Brown were the people who took me to Norwich a long, long time ago, and they give me a chance when I was playing in the Third Division.'