QPR caretaker John Eustace bemoaned his side’s poor performance as the Hoops were thumped 4-0 away at table-topping Norwich.

The visitors trailed by two goals after just 12 minutes thanks to strikes from Emiliano Buendía and Marco Stiepermann before Teemu Pukki added a third following Toni Leistner’s wayward pass.

Buendía saw red in the second half for a reckless challenge on Josh Scowen but QPR could not get themselves back into the game and allowed Pukki to smash home Norwich’s fourth and his 26th of the season late on to complete a miserable day.

Eustace, who was taking charge of his first match following the sacking of Steve McClaren after last Saturday’s home defeat to Bolton, said: “It was a tough afternoon. I was really disappointed with how we started the game, we gave them two really sloppy goals.

“I was very disappointed with the way we defended early on. When Norwich scored their first it seemed to drain the confidence out of the lads and it was a very difficult first half for us.

“At half-time we changed the shape and were competitive in the second-half but at the moment we are low on confidence, you could probably see that.”

The result means the Hoops have now won just one of their last 16 league matches, a run of form that has seen them slip from the cusp of the play-offs to five points off relegation in 18th place.    

The result and manner of the goals conceded were of particular concern to Eustace. He added: “It was alarming, the lads know they’ve let themselves down.

“I was disappointed with the way the goals were conceded but you gave to give full credit to Norwich, who were playing very well.”

Eustace was keen to turn his attention to Wednesday’s crucial clash away to fellow strugglers Millwall. The Lions are just four points behind the Hoops and another defeat would plunge Eustace’s side into further danger.

“We’ve had problems all season and it’s important we forget about today and get ready for another big game on Wednesday, he said.

“We’ve just got to make sure we roll our sleeves up and be ready for Millwall.

“We need to better than we showed in the first 20 minutes today.”