Ben Gibson: Norwich City defender says team must improve 'across the board'
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Ben Gibson tackles Jamie Paterson during Norwich's 1-0 win at Swansea City
Norwich defender Ben Gibson believes they must improve "right across the board" to maintain a promotion push in the second half of the season.
The Canaries returned to action following the World Cup break with a welcome 1-0 victory at Swansea City.
They are fourth in the Championship, one point behind Blackburn, who they meet at Carrow Road on Saturday.
"We're not naive, not everything is rosy because we've won the game," Gibson told BBC Radio Norfolk.
"We've not kept enough clean sheets, we've not been clinical enough at times, and even our general controlling game (needs to improve).
"Right across the board there's things we can improve, we have to demand more from ourselves."
The 29-year-old said the three points at Swansea were especially important following a defeat in their previous game in mid-November when Middlesbrough scored a stoppage-time winner after Norwich had taken an early lead in the game.
"It was important we got out of the traps and got a good result after how we ended before the break," he continued.
"The Middlesbrough game was a killer, personally I am still stewing over that. After the first 30 minutes how we played, to finish how we did was really frustrating, so it was important to find a way to get a result at a place where you know they (Swansea) are going to have lots of possession.
"Until late on we didn't have a lot to do defensively, that's (due to a) good defensive structure. They might have had a lot of possession but without really hurting us."
Following the Blackburn game, Norwich end 2022 with a Boxing Day trip to Luton Town, followed by a home fixture against Reading.
They are seeking an immediate return to the Premier League following last season's relegation and have a six-point gap to make up on Sheffield United in second place.
Gibson said having a break mid-season had been "really strange" and gauging how much work to do in training before the return to action had not been easy.
"No-one knew how to approach it because it's never been done before," he added. "You never know till you get on the pitch. Are you ready? Have you over-cooked it or under-cooked it?
"It is a difficult one for every team. Some teams will get it right and some teams will get it wrong - it's a learning process. But we've got the three points, we've got the start, we've worked hard. We want to improve in every area."