Interim head coach Allan Russell spoke to canaries.co.uk following the 1-0 defeat to Watford at Carrow Road in the Sky Bet Championship.
A late Vakoun Bayo goal was the difference between the two sides in Norwich's first game of 2023.
"It's difficult to sum up," Russell said post-match.
"It was a pretty open game, proper football match. Both teams gave as good as they could get. The boys have left everything on the pitch for me which I've asked them to do.
"Frustration because we've been beaten at home, something we've tried to work hard to avoid so there's a lot of heads down in there that are going to have to lift really soon and get the club back to where it needs to be."
Russell made just one change in the second half, replacing Max Aarons with Andrew Omobamidele at the back.
However, the Scot felt that the players currently on the field were doing enough to 'unlock' Watford.
"Max had to come off, he was really ill before the game and he's done well to last as long as he did," he explained.
"I thought the players that were on there would have unlocked the opposition, I felt there were times when we did. We had a lot of good chances, enough to win the game.
"There were a lot of positive things, the fight and desire from the players was unquestionable. The foundation is there for this team to go and do well."