The best ever debuts in football

The best ever debuts in football history

I began trying to write a post this afternoon about Tottenham left-back Danny Rose whose Spurs career looks likely to come to an ignominious end after a couple of years where he has been quite outspoken on the club and it's ambitions (or lack there of). However, rather than writing a negative piece I thought why not include him in a list of the greatest debuts in football ever. As always I try and build these lists on matches/performances that I'm aware of as opposed to pure research so there is a good chance i'll have missed some great examples - by all means let me know in the comments section of any debuts you can remember that deserve to be added to this list.

Robbie Fowler, full debut Liverpoool, 1993

One of the most instinctive and natural goal scorers the Premier League has ever seen. Fowler scored on his full debut for Liverpool in the League Cup against Fulham but that was just the start! 2 weeks later, he netted 5 times in the return leg! Fowler finished his debut season with an impressive 18 goals in all competitions and would go on to score 30+ goals in the next 4 seasons, making him a Liverpool legend to this day.

Alan Smith, full debut Leeds, 1998

Forget scoring on debut, how about scoring with your first touch as a first-team footballer. That's what Alan Smith did as an 18-year-old when he came on for his debut against Liverpool. Perhaps it's surprising that a player who showed such early promise as a striker found himself scoring fewer and fewer goals in his later career as he transitioned from forward to midfield workhorse.

Wayne Rooney, Machester United debut, 2004

The story is that Alex Ferguson had a tough time convincing the United board to part with £26million pounds for the teenage striker, the largest sum the league had ever seen for a player under 20 years of age. Rooney though repaid that faith immediately with a hattrick on his debut against Fenerbache in the Champions League. Everyone knew that Rooney was a special player but when you consider all the big names who had come to United over the years and struggled with the weight of expectation, I think it shows what an exceptional talent and strong personality he was.

Dany Rose, full league debut Tottenham Hotspur, 2010

I remember this game so vividly as I had been living outside the UK for a couple of years in a time zone that wasn't exactly friending for watching Premier League action and this was the first game I watched on my return. I reckon Danny Rose must only have touched the ball about 4 times before he was substituted at half-time but thankfully 1 of those times was the sweetest left-footed half-volley you will ever see and the fact that it came against Arsenal was all the more delicious. The defeat finished any hopes Arsenal had of winning the title while propelling Spurs to their first Champions League campaign.

Sergio Aguero, Manchester City debut, 2011

Having made his £35million transfer from Atletico Madrid to City, Aguero was left on the bench for his first couple of games and started there for the match against Swansea. All that waiting must have made him keen to make an impact and that's just what he did, starting where he meant to leave off with a tap in at the back post. He scored a 2nd from long range and also provided an assist for David Silva, a combination that has remained lethal for the Citizens over the last 8 years.