BOUGHT this summer from the Belgian side Club Brugge, where he had won two titles during a five season spell, 24 year old Australian Paul Okon has not had an easy first five months in Italian soccer with Lazio. On the one hand, he has been in and out of the team, held back by a series of muscular injuries related to a February operation on right knee ligaments.

On the other hand, Lazio have had a disastrous autumn, being eliminated from the UEFA Cup by Tenerife and from the Italian Cup by Napoli. Furthermore, Lazio have already lost four times in the league, to Bologna, Udinese, Atalanta and Vicenza not exactly biggest names in the game.

Okon, however, is striking a positive note, arguing that both he and the side have got their worst moments behind them now and that both of them can only improve "A lot of people in Italy say that Lazio on their day are unbeatable. I've only been here five months so it's difficult for me to offer a judgement, but if the Lazio game is played correctly, it is very, very effective."

Talented "stranieri" (foreigners) often find themselves beset with a culture shock of crisis proportions when they first arrive in Italy. Far from home, they are bemused by a soccer world where they do not speak the language and where they are subject to severe media pressure.

In recent times, there is the case of Swedish striker Martin Dahlin, signed in the summer by Roma from Borussia Moenchengladbach for $3.3 million. By November, he was back in Germany, having failed to impress fans, critics or Roma officials.

In such a context, Paul Okon has done well. He has not only survived, despite fitness problems, but on the occasions he has played, particularly in his first game in a 1-1 draw away to Internazionale, he stamped himself as a player of vision and technique, despite playing in midfield rather than in his accustomed sweeper role.

"Playing in that first game against Inter at the San Siro in Milan, not really 100 per cent match fit was not easy. For me that game was very, very important because it showed the rest of the team that I could play and that they could have confidence in me."

By comparison to other newly arrived foreigners in Italy, Okon, of course, has a huge advantage. He speaks the language. Born in Bosly Park, near Sydney, Okon is of German/Italian parentage. His emigrant mother came from Pescara on the Adriatic coast and that has left him with almost totally fluent Italian.

Furthermore, he has been helped in the difficult business of settling down far from home by the presence of his parents and his brother. They all live on the Olgiata estate, a sort of VIP compound north of Rome, where the city's wealthy reside.

Okon admits that he has settled well, adding that he likes Rome's, mild Mediterranean winter after the dark grey skies of Bruges. He does concede, though, that the Italian experience is very different from that in Belgium, where he was voted Player of the Year last season.

"For me the Italian competition is the best in the world. In Belgium, soccer is the biggest sport but it remains a sport. They talk about it on the Sunday, the Monday and then you hear nothing more until the Friday or Saturday. Whereas here it is every minute of the day, every TV channel has got programnes that they devote to soccer ...

Okon has a three year contract with Lazio and hopes to see it out. However, if things go wrong, he already knows where he would like go next.

"I don't really think that English football suits my game but if I had an opportunity to go to a am like Liverpool or Newcastle United or Manchester United, then I wouldn't hesitate ...

In the meantime, however, England has come to him in the shape of Terry Venables, recently appointed Australia manager. Okon is delighted with the appointment, seeing it as a major boost for Australia's prospects of World Cup qualification for France 98.

"Somebody with his experience with Barcelona, Tottenham and England would have to be able to make a positive contribution to us getting there (France) ... His appointment means that he should have enough time to be able to put something together that is competitive. This is our biggest chance.