diff --git a/lib/web.c b/lib/web.c
index b7f6bec7f..c6d1b235b 100644
--- a/lib/web.c
+++ b/lib/web.c
@@ -143,8 +143,6 @@ static void * worker(void *ctx)
 {
 	struct web *w = ctx;
 
-	assert(w->state == STATE_STARTED);
-
 	for (;;)
 		lws_service(w->context, 100);
 
@@ -223,11 +221,11 @@ int web_start(struct web *w)
 			error("WebSocket: failed to initialize server");
 	}
 
-	w->state = STATE_STARTED;
 	ret = pthread_create(&w->thread, NULL, worker, w);
 	if (ret)
 		error("Failed to start Web worker");
 
+	w->state = STATE_STARTED;
 
 	return ret;
 }