Tottenham Hotspur's Moussa Sissoko has admitted that his summer on the sidelines left him psychologically "drained" but says he has felt welcome since arriving at White Hart Lane.
Sissoko, 27, asked to leave Newcastle United after the club's relegation to the Championship and did not feature in preseason nor their opening league games before joining Spurs for £30 million, minutes before the Aug. 31 transfer deadline.
The France international, who starred at Euro 2016, has since started three Premier League games but was replaced after around 70 minutes against Middlesbrough and Manchester City, admitting at the Riverside Stadium that he was still not "100 percent" fit.
"I went on holiday, and everyone knew I wanted to leave Newcastle to go to a bigger club, play in the Champions League and compete for titles," Sissoko told FIFA's official website. "Thank God I signed for Tottenham. There were talks that started way before and everything happened in the last few hours.
"I would've liked for it to be done quicker. I was able to rest a bit still, but psychologically, it drained me a bit. I like to have a preseason with the team because it's easier to settle. Arriving at the end of the window isn't the same, even if I was lucky to be well received and everything went well."
Meanwhile, Sissoko's teammate Erik Lamela has said he is happy at Tottenham as he enters negotiations with the club over a new deal.
Seven Spurs players have committed their long-term futures to the club in the last four weeks and Lamela is in talks about extending his contract, which expires in 2019 after he signed a four year deal in 2013, with an option for a further two years.
Asked if he could return to former club River Plate, Lamela told La Pagina Millonaria: "You always have the desire to go back, but I'm also aware that I'm 24 and I'm fine where I am.
"It's a bit difficult to go back now as I still have many years on my contract at Tottenham and I have my head there. I only think of what is coming at Tottenham.
"Time goes by so fast, it seemed like yesterday I was playing for River. I've been in Europe for several years, I'm trying to enjoy every moment because the career is not very long, and I'm enjoying the English football, which I like a lot."