“There were a lot of technical defensive mistakes at Norwich, we don’t value the art of defending enough.
“That was the key message and structurally we were disciplined, hard-working, and when we did get our structure broken, we put our bodies on the line, so big respect to the lads,” he said.
The former Manchester United and Everton midfielder admitted Watford’s last two performances in the league had been under par.
“That’s when a coach has to make some changes,” he said.
“We didn’t do ourselves justice on Saturday and we let those travelling supporters down but we showed a good response and made their journeys [to the Etihad] worth it.”
Watford had to wait until the 86th minute for their goal, scored by Tom Ince, but had a first-half effort by Kwadwo Baah disallowed for a foul on 16-year-old Kaden Braithwaite when the score was 1-0 to City.
“It was a perfectly good goal for me,” said Cleverley.
“It’s a powerful player against a young lad and shoulder to shoulder, he’s always going to do that to him. You’d like to think a referee would understand that.”
Watford now return to league action with home games against Sunderland and Middlesbrough either side of a trip to Preston North End.
They are currently eighth in the table and Cleverley added: “It’s the most important week of the season so far – they’re pivotal weeks these, when you can pick up nine points in seven days.
“I said to the players it really moulds the way our season goes, the next seven to 10 days, and I’m really positive going into that.”