Angelis Charalambous thinks he has a bit of catching up to do to make the transition from reserve football in Cyprus to Motherwell's first team.

The 21-year-old defender won a move from Anorthosis Famagusta, who played in the Champions League two seasons ago, after impressing on trial.

But Charalambous said: "It is a high quality compared to Cyprus football.

"I need to train harder than my team-mates so I can catch up with them to have a chance of having a game."

Charalambous, who can play at right-back or in central defence, has been capped for his country at under-21 level.

However, at Anorthosis, he found himself competing for a place in a defence containing full internationals like Andreas Constantinou and Loukas Stylianou and Cape Verde's Janicio Martins.

Most of my mates don't really know this team Motherwell defender Angelis Charalambous

Should he make an impression in training, Charalambous could make his competitive debut against Icelandic side Breidablik in a qualifier for the Europa League, a competition in which Anorthosis made a disappointing early exit last season.

And, speaking as Motherwell began their pre-season preparations, he said he was delighted to be given the chance to prove himself in Scottish football.

"I am just here to learn," Charalambous told BBC Scotland. "It is more aggressive, faster, stronger, the movement is unbelievable.

"The coaching is brilliant. Craig Brown and Archie Knox are excellent coaches and you can see they know what they are doing compared to coaches in Cyprus."

Charalambous admits that Motherwell are little known in his homeland.

"Most of my mates don't really know this team," he said. "They know Rangers and Celtic and the English Premier League, but it is no problem for me.

"My ambition is to play matches. I will try my hardest and see if I can make it in Scotland.

"It is all up to me. If I have the right attitude and work hard, I think I can play a few games."

The Scottish Premier League club earlier this month handed Charalambous a one-year contract with an option of an extension, while Famagusta will earn a sell-on fee should he be later transferred.

There was a touch of fortune about the circumstances leading up to the move following a visit to Cyprus in January by Motherwell youth coach Gordon Young, who spotted a possible solution to their problem right-back position.

"Motherwell came for pre-season in Cyprus with their under-19 team and we played a match against them and I impressed Gordon Young," explained the defender.

"He wanted to see me against a Cypriot team and I impressed him again. I played a game with them against another team and he called me up to come to Scotland in April and they said they wanted to sign a contract with me."

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