Kodai Sano has wasted little time making his presence felt at PSV.

The 22-year-old Japanese midfielder completed his move from NEC this summer, and Peter Bosz introduced him during Saturday's 2-1 victory over Excelsior.

After showing his qualities in training during his first week, Sano was given his competitive debut in Rotterdam and immediately provided PSV with the energy their coach had been demanding.

Sano admitted the move had not been an easy decision after his time at NEC.

“I am happy that I made my debut. It was difficult to say goodbye to NEC, because I really appreciate the people at that club. But I needed to have confidence to make the decision to come here,” he said as quoted by PSV watcher Rik Elfrink of Eindhovens Dagblad.

He even had an opportunity to score, although the chance did not produce the celebration he wanted.

PSV were forced to work for their victory after Excelsior cancelled out their lead following half-time. The champions responded quickly, restoring their advantage within two minutes, and Sano was part of the side that helped regain control.

“I felt no pressure,” Sano said of the occasion.

He also quickly recognised one of the realities of playing for the defending champions.

“But what I will definitely notice is that everyone wants to beat PSV. We have to do our job and just get results.”

Ruben van Bommel gave PSV the lead in the fifth minute. In the second half, Casper Widell scored the equaliser with a header in the 54th minute, but Ricardo Pepi immediately restored the lead for PSV in the 56th minute from Sergiño Dest's cross.    

Sano's contribution went beyond his work with the ball. His aggression, energy and willingness to compete helped PSV become more secure after the break, precisely the qualities Bosz had felt were missing during the opening period.

Off the pitch, Sano has already received a warm welcome from his new teammates.

“Everyone is open and nice to me. It is not difficult to talk to the players and the coach. I felt welcome. Til Guus was, I believe, the first one who tried to make real contact.”

The midfielder already knew several PSV players from facing them as a NEC player, but acknowledged that playing against someone is very different from becoming their teammate.

“Of course, I already knew him and many other players from the matches, but you don't really make contact there.”

Sano's early impression of PSV has been positive, although he knows Bosz will ultimately decide his place in the starting XI.

“My initial feeling is that I am happy to be here, that the facilities are very good, and that I am ready to play a lot. But of course, that is the coach's decision.”

Sano also spoke positively about Joey Veerman, despite uncertainty surrounding the midfielder's future.

“Yes,” Sano replied when asked whether it was easy to play alongside Veerman. “A very good player and pleasant to play with. He can deliver beautiful passes, and that is no surprise.”

Asked about reports that Veerman could leave PSV, Sano was unaware of the situation.

“I haven't heard anything about that at all,” he said.

For now, his focus is firmly on establishing himself at PSV and continuing the positive start made against Excelsior.

Guus Til, meanwhile, was determined that PSV's title celebrations would not affect their competitive standards.

“Personally, I really wanted to win just now. As far as I'm concerned, it wouldn't be nice to lose after the championship and the party.”

The midfielder said the squad had agreed on a clear objective.

“We agreed that we want to win all the matches that follow. We want to show that we are rightfully champions.”

And Til was pleased with his own performance.

“It did for me. I want to score, be important, accelerate and win. That succeeded today.”

On the altered midfield structure, he added: “I normally play really next to Saibari and now there was someone else in between with Pepi there, so the spaces were distributed differently. Most of the balls were for us, with two controllers that worked well.”