Oscar Estupinan the new hero who took Hull City to the top of the Championship

Shota Arveladze accepted his side were up against it for long periods but was left to reflect upon a scoreline that put the Tigers top of the league.

He said: “I’m not saying this is the best game we’ve played but, strategically, we did very well.

“It’s not about respect (for Norwich) – we have been watching their games and we just didn’t want to give them time (on the ball).

“Maybe we started a bit too early to kill the game (after Nunez scored), but before that we had a really good game.”

Arveladze, who revealed the club are close to signing Birmingham midfielder Ryan Woods, added: “I think it’s a great start to the season.

“In some points they dominated, but not with really clear chances, they only had one clear chance in the second half.

“You have to accept they have a stronger squad. It’s a Premier League team.

“They dominated, definitely, but that’s why we played two different systems and it worked.”

Hull showed plenty of spirit, but Norwich ought to have taken an early lead following an all-action start.

Yet they were up against an inspired nemesis in goalkeeper Matt Ingram, who pulled off an outstanding double save to deny Nunez and Teemu Pukki after just five minutes.

But, once Ozan Tufan sparked Hull into life with a powerful 25th-minute hit that went just over the crossbar, the game changed.

Estupinan gave the Tigers the edge when he seized upon Max Aarons’ naive clearance that struck Andrew Omobamidele’s groin. The Columbia international was ideally positioned and could not miss. Norwich were surprisingly poor after the restart and lacked the physicality of Hull’s well-drilled midfield.

Estupinan was also a persistent threat and scored an easy second after Tufan’s corner caused deep consternation within Norwich’s shaky backline. Smith can at least take solace from the response of his team, with Nunez’s 72nd-minute free-kick having given them hope.

Aaron Ramsey also spurned a glorious chance from Aaron’s perfect cross from the right five minutes later, with the Norwich substitute later denied by a clearance off the line by Jacob Greaves.

Canaris boss Smith lamented: “Sometimes you get some strange results at this time of the season.”

Hull City: Ingram, Coyle, T Figueiredo, Greaves, Elder, A Jones, Slater, Sayyadmanesh, Tufan (Williams 80), Tetteh (Cannon 63), Estupinan (Covil 77). Unused substitutes: Baxter, McLoughlin, Wilks, Callum Jones.

Norwich City: Krul, Aarons, Omobamidele, Hanley, Sorensen (Gibbs 57), Dowell (Hernandez 67), McLean, Nunez, Rashica (Sargent 58), Pukki, Cantwell (Ramsey 67). Unused substitutes: Gibson, Sinani, Gunn.

Referee: J Linington (Isle of Wight).