Birmingham City loanee Krystian Bielik has described the switch from youth football with Arsenal to first-team Championship action as eye-opening.
The 19-year-old defender joined the Blues on a season-long loan in the final day of the January transfer window, and has made two appearances in the second tier so far.
Bielik played the final 35 minutes of Birmingham's 2-1 win at Wolverhampton Wanderers and was praised by fans and pundits alike for shoring up his side's defence.
He told the Birmingham Mail: "It was a massive experience for me. I never expected that the Championship was like this. In the youth teams with Arsenal it's not like here.
"I have played with boys, here you just fight with big lads, you could see that with every fight, every single jump for the ball - they are like warriors, big, massive, stronger than me - but that doesn't mean I am worse than them.
"It's good that I am tall, you have to think about it and be smart with your body position and reading of the game. If you are not stronger you have to be faster than them. I helped my team on Friday and I am really happy."
Bielik is contracted to Arsenal until June 2020.
Giuseppe Labellarte
