Sanchez replaced previous incumbent Chris Coleman at the end of last season as the Cottagers avoided relegation from the top flight by a single point.

While the Welshman was forced to manage on a tight budget and injuries exposed a threadbare squad, the purse strings have been loosened for Sanchez, who has brought in seven players so far and is eyeing further signings before the transfer window closes at the end of August.

And although the former Northern Ireland manager understands that he is expected to produce a return on Mohammed Al Fayed's investment, he claims it is not something that is weighing on his mind.

"If I hadn't spent any money there would have been pressure, if I had spent some money there's still pressure. It's the nature of Premier League management," he said.

"It's an indication of how the chairman's commitment to the club is as big as ever and now the players have got to deliver on that money and we have to do that this season.

"I think what happened last season highlighted the fact the club has been in top division for several seasons and they didn't want that to happen again, to be involved in a scrap at the bottom again and avoid relegation by one point.

"So it meant some improvement had to be done not just in the quality of the squad but the depth of the squad and that was a point I made to the chairman.

"We went to Middlesbrough on the final day of the season with a squad of 15 fit players and I had to give a 16-year-old kid his debut.

"Fortunately we were safe but we needed a squad that no matter what injuries and suspensions was still capable of competing every time we play and that's what we've done.

"I'd still like to bring one or two more players in and hopefully we've got the money available to do that and we'll see what happens during the season.

"There's several deals bubbling along but there's more than one club involved so it depends on whether the player wants to come, the asking price and when there's more than one club involved the asking price usually goes beyond what you want to pay.

"I've still got another month until the end of the window but I would expect in every position to have a player and someone alongside him not in the side who can also be considered first-choice and that's what we're trying to build."

And Sanchez revealed that he has already started to see the benefits of his recruitment policy.

"It's only when there are more people competing for your position that you step up a little bit because you can't afford to rest on your laurels and I've noticed that in training," he said.

"Everbody's looking over their shoulders and it's not a bad way for players to be like that.

"It's a long, hard season and we want to compete in the cups as well as the league and to do that we need strength in depth."

One player who could be leaving, however, is Michael Brown after Sanchez confirmed the midfielder was absent from the squad currently in Hong Kong taking part in the Barclays Asia Trophy as he is in discussions over a possible move.

"Michael Brown is not with us on this tour, in this moment in time he is talking to another club and discussions are ongoing," he said.

The Fulham boss will get the chance to see his new signings in action when they take on Portsmouth in the Barclays Asia Trophy at Hong Kong Stadium tomorrow night.

And although it may only be a pre-season tournament, he still wants to instil the combative streak into his charges that served him well as a player during his Wimbledon days.

"Getting Portsmouth was good for us," he added.

"We've come here to be competitive but we're still early in our pre-season but it'd be nice to lift the trophy.

"The climate is very different to what we're used to but we'll certainly give it our best shot to get into the final and win a trophy."