New signing Simeon Akinola says he has joined a club in Barnet where there are no excuses for failure and intends to work hard to bridge the gap from the Vanarama National League.

The pacey 24-year-old winger-cum-forward became the Bees’ fourth pre-transfer window signing when he joined in a £40,000 deal from Braintree Town.

Akinola made his EFL debut alongside John Akinde as Barnet dispatched table toppers Plymouth Argyle 1-0 at The Hive London on Monday.

Now the Nigerian-born forward is hungry for more and believes everything is in place to realise his potential.

“The leagues aren’t miles apart – it’s not night and day,” Akinola explained. “It will take some time to adjust, particularly for me coming from a part-time club where we trained twice a week.

“Now I’m in a place where there’s no excuse at all. I’m here to work hard and be successful.”

“You get more intelligent players at this level. Every team is full time so you get players who are sharper and there are players who drop down from a higher level and play at this level.”

Akinola’s upbringing has been in non-league football with Braintree, Harrow Borough and, first, Boreham Wood.

It was at Meadow Park where he encountered Barnet’s own Mauro Vilhete. But he was unable to seek the advice of the versatile Portuguese owing to the rapid nature of his move from Essex.

“It’s been hectic because it happened very fast. I’ve settled in well because the boys have been very receptive and friendly. 

“Thankfully I knew one of the players, Mauro Vilhete, from before which has definitely helped me with the adjustment.

“It was so fast – even I didn’t know it was going to happen at that pace. I’ve spoken to Mauro since and he’s been really helpful, shown me around and told me the dos and do nots.

“Apart from that it’s been really good and I’m looking forward to spending more time with the boys and establishing myself.”

You can watch Simeon’s full video interview below: