Despite the 5-1 thrashing by Fiorentina on Sunday, the veteran was still relieved to get a first appearance under his belt.
The former Borussia Dortmund defender told La Gazzetta dello Sport: "I'm happy to have finally made my debut, I've been waiting for this moment for a long time.
"I've been hoping for a while to set foot on the pitch in Serie A. Obviously this feeling contrasts with the sadness over the defeat in Florence and how it went. We're not happy with the current results, but the team is strong, in a few weeks things can only improve.
"The fans expect the team to play better and they are right. I like everything here: the club, the atmosphere of the stadium, the love of the people. Now it's just a matter of improving, we have to do it as soon as possible."