Hat‑tricks, 25‑yarders and nutmegs – could a debut be any more spectacular?
After Ainsley Maitland‑Niles’ dramatic stoppage‑time equaliser on his Everton debut versus Manchester United, we asked our writers for their top picks.
Some memories will be crystal clear, others hazy. Share your thoughts and favorite picks.
Wayne Rooney — Manchester United vs Fenerbahce; September 28, 2004
Oliver Kay
Sir Alex Ferguson warned fans to be patient with Wayne Rooney after his contentious £27 million move from Everton to United in August 2004.
At 18, Rooney faced sky‑high expectations and was still nursing a fractured metatarsal from a quarter‑final loss to Portugal.
When Rooney finally debuted in a Champions League group clash against Fenerbahçe, he dazzled with a hat‑trick – all from outside the box, the third a flawless free‑kick. In my view, that performance eclipsed even Ronaldo’s cameo a year earlier.
Ferguson then tried to downplay the frenzy. Good luck with that.
Sergio Aguero — Manchester City vs Swansea City; August 15, 2011
Thom Harris
By the early 2010s Manchester City had already splashed big money, yet the arrival of Sergio Aguero at the Etihad sparked a fresh wave of excitement and mystery.
The Argentine would finish his first season with 23 league goals, including the title‑snatching winner against QPR on the final day, after coming off the bench with just 30 minutes left in that Monday night opener.
His opener was a simple side‑foot at the back post from a Micah Richards cross, followed three minutes later by a header for David Silva to tap home, hinting at a future star.
What stays vivid is Aguero’s second strike – a thunderous 25‑yard blast that left the stadium in disbelief, imagining the heights City could reach with such firepower.
It turned out to be massive.
Paul Merson — Walsall vs West Bromwich Albion; August 9, 2003
Steve Madeley
Walsall, then the most‑played side in the third tier, occupied our place in the footballing hierarchy.
We never signed legends like Paul Merson – the Arsenal icon, England star, Villa hero, the Magic Man.
Then we did. Merson sought a Midlands return after a Portsmouth stint, and Walsall’s lengthy second‑tier spell made it happen.
Albion, fresh from Premier League relegation and tipped as promotion favourites, were expected to dominate the opening derby – but they didn’t.
Scorching heat, Merson fired up, and within 39 minutes he volleyed a sublime strike into the top corner and followed with a thunderous shot from similar range, making it 2‑0.
He then ran the match. Walsall triumphed 4‑1 (Steve Corica added an even finer goal). We seemed destined for the top flight with Merson at the helm.
Six months later, Merson’s well‑publicised personal struggles resurfaced, sending him to rehab in the United States.
Yet Walsall fans will forever recall that blistering August afternoon.
Edin Dzeko — Manchester City vs Wolverhampton Wanderers; January 15, 2011
Eduardo Tansley
My first Premier League appearance coincided with Edin Džeko’s Manchester City debut. Towering at 6 ft 4 in (193 cm), he moved with surprising elegance.
Džeko didn’t find the net, but his assist in the 4‑3 victory stood out, a one‑two with Carlos Tevez that slipped through a Wolves defender to Yaya Toure.
His later tally of 72 goals in 189 City games, plus a standout World Cup run for Bosnia at age 40, makes me glad our Premier League beginnings aligned.
Micky Quinn — Newcastle United vs Leeds United; August 19, 1989
George Caulkin
Newcastle had dropped from the old First Division the season before.
Fans protested the board and even called for a boycott. When the stocky, moustached Merseysider Mick Quinn arrived from Portsmouth for £680,000, mutinous supporters brandished a banner reading, ‘Who the f*** is Mick Quinn?’
Ninety minutes in, we got the answer: a f***ing No 9.
Quinn, a poacher supreme, netted four as a strong Leeds side – eventual champions – fell 5‑2. Hours later, he was seen relieving himself in a hotel plant pot, and he finished the season with 34 goals.
Amitai Winehouse
You might wonder why a mid‑twenties Londoner spent summer evenings streaming Leeds, then a middling Championship side, against fourth‑tier Port Vale in the Carabao Cup.
The real story is Samu Saiz’s debut: he looked like a Messi clone, scoring a hat‑trick, one goal a dazzling dribble and finish that would make the Argentine great proud.
Leeds fans remembered Michael Tonge, who scored for Vale, and manager Michael Brown from a couple of years earlier; yet Saiz seemed otherworldly. He shone for six months before vanishing without fanfare.
That Wednesday night will stay with us.
Amelie Claydon
Pedro joined Chelsea from Barcelona at 28, already a World Cup winner and two‑time European champion with Spain. His Premier League debut at West Brom saw him score after 20 minutes and set up Diego Costa before halftime.
César Azpilicueta made it 3‑1, then John Terry was sent off early in the second half as West Brom pulled one back, but Chelsea held on for a 3‑2 win.
It brightened a bleak title chase that ultimately led to José Mourinho’s second departure in December. Pedro logged 40 appearances and eight goals that season as Chelsea finished 10th, yet a year later he lifted the Premier League trophy with the club.
Beren Cross
Ben White arrived on loan at second‑division Leeds after back‑to‑back season‑long spells at League Two Newport County and then Peterborough United. Biel‑sa initially placed the 21‑year‑old in the under‑23s.
Consequently, expectations were modest entering the new Championship campaign. Veteran centre‑back Pontus Jansson had been swapped for the lanky, inexperienced Brighton youngster.
He turned out to be a Rolls‑Royce.
White displayed icy composure at Ashton Gate. Playing centre‑back, the future Arsenal and England right‑back remained unflappable, always picking the right option and delivering passes with flair.
It was one of those matches where you instantly sensed a player operating above the level. White was two steps ahead, his intelligence and technique fitting Biel‑sa’s high‑risk, high‑line system.
He could thread passes in tight spaces, dribble through presses and time tackles perfectly, setting the tone for a season that saw him crowned the best player in Leeds’ 2019‑20 title‑winning side.
Jose Dominguez — Birmingham City reserves vs Swansea City (or West Bromwich Albion) reserves, early 1994
Rob Tanner
Since Alberto Tarantini’s 1978 Birmingham signing, no overseas talent had generated such buzz at St Andrew’s.
By early 1994, Birmingham couldn’t afford a recent World Cup winner like Tarantini, but they did recruit a diminutive Portuguese winger, José Domínguez.
The move felt surreal: a Benfica graduate standing at just 5 ft 5 in (165 cm) was expected to survive English football’s physicality.
Anticipation was so high that thousands, myself included, turned up at St Andrew’s one weekday afternoon for his reserve‑team debut.
Now, 32 years later, I can’t recall the score or opponent, though I once thought it was Swansea. Domínguez later clarified it was West Brom, where he supplied four assists in a 5‑0 win before 9 000 spectators.
What I do remember is thinking, what a player! His movement, dribbling and raw talent lodged firmly in my memory.
Christian Eriksen — Brentford v Newcastle United; February 26, 2022
Jay Harris
Many assumed Christian Eriksen’s career was over after his 2021 European Championship cardiac arrest.
He spent six days in hospital, received an ICD, and his Inter contract was terminated due to Italian rules barring players with heart devices.
Seven months later he returned as a second‑half substitute for Brentford against Newcastle. The 2‑0 loss offered limited impact, yet the standing ovation he received was inspiring.
By season’s end, Eriksen played a key role in Brentford’s survival, erasing memories of that June tragedy.
Simon Johnson
Chelsea felt a surge of satisfaction when they outbid several clubs to secure Eden Hazard from Lille in 2012.
Hazard arrived under a £32 million price tag, attracting scrutiny, especially as other European heavyweights had also chased the Belgian.
He answered doubts within six minutes of his Premier League debut, providing the decisive moment.
Hazard delivered his first assist in under two minutes, slipping past Ivan Ramis and threading a perfect pass to Branislav Ivanović for the goal.
Ramis, enduring a debut to forget, was fouled again four minutes later as Hazard dribbled in and drew a penalty, which Frank Lampard converted, giving Chelsea a 2‑0 lead and hinting at the magic to come.