Jakub Kiwior made his bow for FC Porto following his summer loan switch from Arsenal during the transfer window. The defender departed the Gunners on deadline day for a season-long temporary stint and it is understood Porto have an obligation to purchase Kiwior permanently, potentially reaching €27million (£23.4m), with €2m (£1.7m) in additional clauses.
As his exit coincided with the international break, Kiwior joined up with Poland's national squad before meeting his new Porto colleagues earlier this week. Despite minimal training time with his new side, he was handed a starting berth in their Liga Portugal clash against Nacional.
Nevertheless, the Polish centre-half confessed his selection caught him off guard, stating: "I didn't expect it [to be named in the starting XI] but I can only thank the coach for giving me a huge opportunity.
"I'm very happy to have played this game. FC Porto is a great team, and it's an honour for those of us who are here to play for this club."
"[Jan] Bednarek helped me a lot, but not just him, but the whole team. I've only been here a week, but they've helped me a lot because everything is new to me.
"It was a tough week, but with their help, it got easier. It was a difficult game but I'm very happy. It was difficult, we won and the atmosphere in the stadium was fantastic. It's an honour to play in this stadium with this team."
Porto manager Francesco Farioli heaped praise on the defender's display. "He's an important player and the club made a significant effort to sign him," the Italian said.
"He's a player who will bring quality and international experience. We're missing some players and had to speed up some processes. He played 90 minutes and showed good control of the game."
The 25-year-old delivered an impressive debut, securing a 7.9 rating from Sofascore—the match's highest mark. He triumphed in all four of his ground battles, his only aerial challenge, and achieved a 96 per cent pass completion rate.
Meanwhile, Mais Futebol granted him four out of five stars for his inaugural showing.