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Cape Town - Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka feels he is finally adjusting to life of London and playing in the English Premier League this season.
Xhaka arrived with much fanfare in the off-season as the club's marquee signing for a reported £35 million from Borussia Mönchengladbach, where he built a reputation of being a combative central midfielder.
However, as the 24-year-old prepares to face one of his former clubs, FC Basel, in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday night, he admits he needed to be eased into the squad - the way Arsene Wenger has done since his arrival.
Wenger was criticised earlier in the campaign by English media for the lack of trust he showed in the Switzerland captain but he has more than justified his stance - with Xhaka now looking settled in the London side's midfield.
"Well, actually, it's normal when you come to a new club and country," Xhaka told Sky Sports. "You need to get used to the language, the philosophy of the team, the squad, the coach.
"But I do feel very happy and comfortable here, and I know the potential I have. In football you just have to develop yourself."
Wenger, meanwhile, said: "He is adjusting. Coming to a new club, where there is a big competition for places... he has kept his focus and has done his job well every day.
"I believe he has adjusted to the intensity of the game already and the duels in the middle of the park."
