Yeovil’s latest signing Francois Zoko is feeling confident he can help the Glovers push up the table, after his whirlwind start to life in Somerset.

Zoko is likely to feature in his first game in front of the Huish Park faithful after making his full debut in the 0-0 draw against Newport County at the weekend, playing seventy minutes just a day after signing a short term deal with the Glovers.

But the striker wasn’t fazed at all about the lack of training time to jump straight into action, and feels that the best way to get going physically is playing matches.

The Ivorian explained, “It was a quick start! I signed here Friday and played on Saturday, but this is what I needed. I needed to be in straight away.

“Playing 70 minutes for me is better than two training sessions. For the next game I’ll be in a good condition, I’ll manage it and I’m happy about it. My fitness is not bad, but match fitness is the best thing for a professional footballer, so it’ll take some games but I’ll try my best to score or do something good.”

Zoko had some options to choose from before committing to his short-term future in Somerset, and ironically one of them would be the team he’d make his Glovers debut against: Newport!

But the forward said he took time to make sure that this next step was the right one for him and his career, and says that manager Paul Sturrock was a massive influence in his decision.

“I’m very happy to be here,” said the 32 year old. “It’s been a long time, I’ve been looking for something to give me this feeling, you know, to wake up to go to training and be happy. I spoke with the manager and it was good. I had some choices but I wanted to come here.”

“I knew about the manager through somebody who worked with him, and I felt really good about it. When you go somewhere as a player, it’s not just knowing about the club but I want to know who I’m working with, and this makes a difference.

“I know a bit about the club too and I see some quality players, I think I can get going and go from there.”

 

After arriving in England initially on trial at Carlisle in 2010, Yeovil are Zoko’s sixth English club, and despite spells in France, Belgium and Turkey, it is definitely here where the Ivorian feels most comfortable.

The striker explained, ‘This will be my sixth season in England; I have played in Turkey, Belgium and in France but not as a professional. I was in the academy (in France), but I have played here the most.

"I understand the English game now, I know with my experience I can help too and I am really confident about what I can do here. 

He jokingly concluded, “So from my point of view, I am an ‘English’ player!”