Neil Adams will not be afraid to offer some tough love to Norwich City's players to drag the Canaries towards Premier League safety.

Adams is ready to use every trick in his coaching armoury to halt a decline which has sucked City firmly into danger ahead of Saturday's trip to relegation rivals Fulham.

'I will put myself in their position,' he said. 'When a new manager comes in with five games to go how do I want to be managed? I am in the fortunate position of having been there. I have played at the highest level and seen coaches and managers who got it right and who you want to go and play for. It is something I am good at. I can motivate players and I will make them aware of what they need to do. It is not a case of carrot or stick or softly, softly, it is a mixture of everything.

'Right from Howard Kendall at Everton, when we won what would be the Premier League now, and at Norwich where I played under five or six managers you take little bits and pieces from all of them. You dismiss the things that would not work for you but you certainly remember and take on all the bits you like. I worked for a lot of very, very good managers. Any help or tips and advice that can benefit me I will take.'

Adams insists it is a clean slate for the entire squad and the club's FA Youth Cup winning coach believes age is no barrier when it comes to those who can bolster the club's survival bid.

'Obviously with what happened last year and even the players above that age group out on loan I have a very good knowledge of them,' he said. 'But there is a good group of first team players and anybody I feel can do us a job I will not hesitate to use them. Age is not a barrier.

'The game is the same at every level, it just so happens I am now managing at the top level. Of course the margins for error are a lot smaller but the principles are the same. Every coach will try to put their stamp and philosophy on it.'