English Premiership side Spurs agreed to the deal with Qu's Chinese club Qingdao Yizhong after the 21-year-old impressed during a two-week trial at White Hart Lane.

Qu's agent Gao Qi told Qu had agreed to a one-year loan with a view to a more permanent move. Qu, who has 19 caps for China and featured in all three of his country's World Cup matches in the summer, said he felt confident and relaxed at Spurs.

"I am now successful," he said. "This will prove the biggest turning point of my professional career."

The striker's performances were one of the few bright spots in China's otherwise disappointing World Cup debut in June, which saw them crash out in the first round without even scoring a goal.

Qu said the Spurs players had been made him feel welcome.

"All of them are friendly to me, especially (Teddy) Sheringham and (Jamie) Redknapp," he said.

"I think they appreciate my ability. The atmosphere in the training camp is wonderful which I think has boosted my confidence.

"The boss has also talked to me several times. He gave me a lot of credit for my skills and he also said that everybody in the team liked me. But the best thing he likes is that I can play in several positions."

The Chinese youngster is aware he could spend most of his time with the club on the bench.

"At home, I also spent a lot of time on the bench," he said.

"So that will not concern me. I would rather sit on Spurs' bench than that at home. I believe I can squeeze into the first team through my efforts."

Qu can play as a winger and a more orthodox center forward and is widely considered one of China's brightest prospects, in addition to being the fastest player in the national squad.

(China Daily August 12, 2002)