Marcel Gecov is eager to establish himself in the Premier League after his dream move to Fulham.
Czech new boy hopes to settle in quickly at Craven Cottage
Marcel Gecov is eager to establish himself in the Premier League after completing his dream move to Fulham.
The Czech midfielder has joined the Cottagers on a two-year deal from Slovan Liberc for a fee of around £700,000.
And the 23-year-old has revealed he didn't want to tempt fate by announcing his desire to try his luck in England.
"Now that the contract is signed I feel great," he told
isport.blesk.cz. "It's the Premier League, which has always been a dream destination for me.
"I never had the courage to say it because I didn't want it to sound too daring. Now it's a reality, though, and it's fantastic.
"I only know Fulham from television and will learn everything thoroughly when I'm there," Gecov added. "Within two weeks I should be settled in there.
Experience
"Naturally, I know where I'm going. I have been following the Premier League and can imagine what it's going to be like. I can't wait to experience it."
Gecov has been watched by Fulham scouts for the last 18 months and had plenty of suitors before being convinced he would be a part of new boss Martin Jol's plans.
And the Under 21 international has no concerns about being handed just a two-year contract, despite his tender years.
"I'm not worried about that," he said. "If I'm playing well, then I will get a new contract.
"We (Gecov and his agent, Jiri Muller) discussed it and decided it was only worth moving to a club where the manager wanted me, not just the scouts or the board, so we waited for Mr Jol's view. When he said he would wanted me in his squad there was no problem anymore."
Gecov first caught the eye in 2007 as the Czech Republic finished runners-up at the Under 20 World Championship in Canada.
The tough-tackling defensive midfielder was also in the Czech squad at this summer's Under 21 European Championship, impressing in the 2-1 group win over England, and he will travel to London on Sunday for his first training session on Monday.
Several offers
"Ahead of the U21 Euro, we registered specific offers from Nijmegen and Sparta Prague, and Marcel was also followed by Espanyol, but the Spaniards had the idea of Marcel having to get used to their type of football in the reserve team," explained his agent Muller.
"After the match with England, Fulham contacted us, but then things cooled down from that end. Then it seemed like Marcel was going to Sparta, who did all they could to land him.
"Unfortunately for them, if a Premier League club joins the race, there is nothing they can do. Two weeks ago Fulham gave us a specific offer and things started to move.
"We were already discussing contract terms with them when Stuttgart contacted us too. (Sporting director) Fredi Bobic called me and said how much they wanted Marcel but that they could not negotiate right then. Neither us nor Slovan Liberec wanted to wait any longer, though."
