Sunderland signing Jozy Altidore says his loan spell at Hull City early in his career was valuable.
The 23-year-old says his further experience in European football since his time at the KC Stadium stands him in good stead to shine on Wearside.
"It [the loan spell at Hull] was really important for me because I had no experience in European football anywhere ,so going on loan to Hull was good for me in terms of just getting my feet wet and to start playing," Altidore told safc.com.
"It was a good experience for me - I learned a lot about myself. I look back on it as one of the things that helped shape me into the player that I am today."
And he says his early exposure to the English top flight made the decision to join Sunderland an easy one.
"That was my first taste of the Barclays Premier League after watching it growing up," he added.
"After playing in it I got to be exposed to it so I knew that this was a league that if you have the chance to be in it for as long as possible, then you should definitely take that chance for sure."
