Issa Diop says he has had to learn quickly after heading to the Premier League with West Ham United this summer.
The 21-year-old defender, who arrived from French side Toulouse, has been a key part of the defence which has claimed seven points from assignments against Everton, Chelsea and Manchester United in the last two weeks.
Just a couple of months after crossing the English Channel, Diop is happy with the progress he is making seven games into his Hammers career but says there is far more to come following an impressive display in the 3-1 victory against the Red Devils.
He explained: “It is good my confidence – we’ve come up against Olivier Giroud for Chelsea last week and Romelu Lukaku this. I think I’ve played a normal game and I need to improve and work hard to play better.
“I need to adapt [to the Premier League], but in football you don’t have the time so you need to learn quickly and play well from the first day. I needed to be ready from the start.
“The Premier League is faster and it is box-to-box. In France, the teams don’t go full in the attack, but here all the strikers, the wingers are strong, physical and quick. It’s not that easy to defend against.
In football you don’t have the time so you need to learn quickly and play well from the first day. I needed to be ready from the start
Issa Diop
“Scoring against Wimbledon was for sure a good moment for me. If I didn’t score, it would have been the same, I would have continued to work hard and have confidence in myself. That’s all – I try to do my best on the pitch.”
Diop has formed a promising partnership with Fabian Balbuena in recent weeks and the Frenchman says it is easy to slot in alongside a defender of the Paraguayan’s ability.
He added: “We are improving with each game – we are building the relationship because we have only played a few games together.
“He is a very good defender and it’s easy for me to play with him because he is very strong, he talks and has experience.
“We have a good team and I think we can do better. We need to improve but we are on a good path and I hope the victory helps with that."