Julio Enciso has stressed the importance of having South American teammates around him as he gets more minutes in the Premier League.
The attacking midfielder came off the bench for the sixth time in the Premier League as a 75th-minute substitute in last Saturday’s 1-0 win over Bournemouth. Enciso, who only turned 19 last month, also started in all three of our Carabao Cup ties earlier this season.
He said, “It really helps to have South American team-mates like Alexis [Mac Allister], Pervis [Estupinan], Jeremy [Sarmiento] and Moises [Caicedo], they help me a lot. I have had to wait to play minutes and I’ve trained a lot, but I think this is normal as it’s new football, a new country and a new type of football.”
Enciso, who won the first of his eight Paraguay caps when he was 17, can operate in wide areas but in a recent under-21s match against Leicester City he was employed in a central role and got on the scoresheet.
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“The truth is that it is not my main position but if the coach needs me there, I will look to help the team with what I do. When I played there for the under-21s I felt at home but I feel better [wide] and thought I did well. I don’t mind, to get minutes is the most important thing for me.”
Enciso says he prides himself on his communication with his teammates which is why he’s happy to have English lessons three times a week.
“The biggest thing for me has been the language because interacting with my colleagues is what I enjoy most," he added.
“I’m learning a lot with the teacher and as the days and months go by, I will learn more. I go to the same [English] class as Pervis and Moises and it is really helping.”