Hodgson, the mastermind of the most successful spell in the Cottagers' history, departed for Liverpool over the summer.
Hughes was given the unenviable task of filling his shoes but the former Manchester City boss has made a encouraging start to his tenure.
A point secured at Bolton was followed up by Sunday's thrilling 2-2 draw with Manchester United and Hangeland insists the team are content under Hughes.
"There is no reason why we should lose our team spirit because we changed manager," said the Norway defender,"Towards the end against United our team spirit was every bit as good as it has been for the last couple of years.
"We came back again at Craven Cottage as we have done many times. It was a great feeling to be part of that and I'm confident Mark Hughes can lead us in the right direction."
Source: PA
Source: PA