Brentford goalkeeper Mark Flekken has admitted he underestimated how difficult it would be to adapt to life in the Premier League.
The Brentford number one has been speaking to Via Play, relayed by Voetbal Nieuws, about life in England after his first season with the Bees.
He arrived in the summer for David Raya, who had impressed with Brentford since their rise to the Premier League but had moved to Arsenal.
Flekken was secured in an early €13m deal from SC Freiburg and was largely seen as another potential bargain capture for Brentford’s recruitment team.
He ended up enduring something of a difficult first campaign, though, as Brentford struggled to hit their previous heights and he conceded 63 goals in 37 games in the league in total.
Like many new goalkeepers to the league, he struggled early on, with many questioning whether he was actually a viable long-term replacement for former favourite Raya.
And he admits that he initially did find things difficult, having underestimated how difficult it would be to step up to the Premier League from the Bundesliga.
“I underestimated it. What I didn’t expect was that it would take me so long to settle down,” he admitted.
That first season can only be of benefit to his second campaign.