Hughton today has backed Andy Carroll to continue “ruffling the feathers” of Coca-Cola Championship sides that dare to give him space in and around the penalty area.
But so often he is the pivot of the forward-line, surrounded by four defenders, and the tactics so often revolve around the rest of the team "hitting the big lad" with high balls.
Danny Guthrie said this week that Hughton doesn't spend much time on the training ground "talking tactics", and we got the impression the players are thrown out onto the field with very little worry of having a head full of complicated instruction.
And Carroll is our Peter Crouch ... and so often the temptation is to loft the ball forward to the 'battering ram'.
Carroll could easily have had a hat-trick against Cardiff because he finally got the service from the wings he has been asking for.
We all know Jonas Gutiérrez can beat seven men, the corner flag and the linesman ... but he struggles to find a black and white shirt after a 70yd dazzling run.
But everything hit Carroll like a magnet on Friday.
Chris Hughton: “That was Andy Carroll at his very best.
“He has got to enjoy that performance. And he’s got to look at his standards and his targets for the rest of the season.
“I’m really pleased with him and I hope he can go on and build on it.
“He’s capable of ruffling feathers when he plays like that.”
>> Terms & Conditions