Maxime Le Marchand ‘loved’ his Fulham debut – even if it was only 45 minutes in a goalless draw on Saturday against Reading at Aldershot.

The French defender displayed his versatility moments into his first appearance, beginning at left back against the Royals before an early injury to Tim Ream saw him step into central defence. Le Marchand, who signed for Fulham from Nice last week, told Football.London after the final whistle that he was thrilled with his first action in a Fulham shirt:

I loved it, even though it was just 45 minutes, I was able to get a feeling for what it is like to play in this league and in this country. It’s something that I really appreciated and I hope that I will be able to give my best to this team.

The new signing believes he’s settling in well at Craven Cottage – and thinks it is a bonus to have his former Nice team-mate Jean-Michael Seri, who watched from the stands at the weekend, alongside him.

I’ve been made to feel very welcome by everyone at the club and the players and I’m really happy to be here with this team. I’m very happy to be with him [Jean-Michael Seri] here, he is a friend and he has a philosophy which is the way that I like to play as well. I’m very happy that he is here with me.

Le Marchand revealed that he took the opportunity to ask new Nice manager and former Arsenal legend Patrick Vieira, who revitalised his career in England, about Fulham before agreeing to the transfer.

I’ve watched them and spoken to a lot of people about Fulham, even at Nice, Patrick Vieira said they were a very good team that attack well and keep the ball and have a very good style of play. It is entirely my game, I like making these passes and that’s what I like working on. The people around me, correspond to how I like to play, Tom, Stef is a really good guy and he plays like me.

The 28 year-old defender feels his lack of fluency in English won’t hold him back for too long.

I know some words in football, ‘on your back’, ‘left’, ‘right’, and ‘come on guys’ and that’s enough for the time being. The first stop is to play well, to help the club develop and play as well, to have a good time and prolong our stay as much as possible in the Premier League.