Fulham defender Philippe Senderos was thrilled to make his long-awaited debut for Fulham against Sunderland at the weekend.

The Swiss centre-back, who arrived at Craven Cottage from Arsenal last June, started Saturday’s 3-0 victory at the Stadium of Light.

The 26-year-old had missed most of the campaign after tearing his Achilles tendon just days before the new season.

Senderos stepped into the first-team for the absent Brede Hangeland against the Black Cats, and admitted it had been a long wait.

He said “It took a little while to find my feet, which is natural, but of course, this was a good day all round.

“I had waited a long time to make my debut for the club and I’m delighted to have finally pulled on the shirt.

“But of course, it is never about individuals – the team performed very well and in what was a difficult game we got the job done.

“I think we showed a lot of character and quite often in football, that can be the big difference.”