Débuts; the Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Anyone had a player who's had an "interesting" début?

My best in recent times was by player who joined my Honved side over the winter break. Facing off against AC Milan in the Champions League quarter final, I needed him new leftback to stand up and do a damn good job, especially with Robinho floating about.

Less than a minute in he scored an own goal!

One of the worst one's I had was Gareth Bale when I was at Man Utd. I signed him for £33 million and Bryan Robson had come out and said that he wasn't worth it while the fans weren't too happy either. I gave him the shirt number 33 to show everyone just how much I paid and would make him wear it until he'd paid the money back. His first game was shocking. 3 golden chances all blazed over the bar, poor defending and 2 goals caused by his lack of marking. He made up for it later in the season, scoring 8 and assisting 6.

I remember signing an argentine defender once, on his debut managed to concede a penalty and get himself sent off in the first five minutes. Though on the other sideof the specturm i signed a regen called matt munns for liverpool, playing against man u in the community shield, scored 2 goals in the first 20 mins, brilliant performance. Though sadly he tore his hamstring not long after

Not quite a debut but I had got to the semi finals of the world cup against Brazil (I was England). Steven Gerrard was 34, in his last world cup, as captain, and in his last season for Liverpool.

He got injured in the first game of the world cup and was almost fit for the semi final so I stuck him on the bench hoping for a bit of a 'not so secret weapon' to come on as I knew the game was going to be tight. It was great timing for such a good player to be coming back from injury to go out on a high with England, right? Wrong!

The game was very tight and at 1-1 with 60mins to go I bring him on and before he has touched the ball, on 62 mins, he lunges at one of the Brazilians and gets a straight red card. Game over. We basically had no chance after that against an amazing Brazilian team. We went on to lose 2-1, in extra time, and ended the game with nine men.

I really believe we would have won that game if it hadn't been for the tool that is Steven Gerrard.

Thanks, Stevie, you're a legend.

Not quite a debut but I

...but you what?

I remember signing an argentine defender once, on his debut managed to concede a penalty and get himself sent off in the first five minutes. Though on the other sideof the specturm i signed a regen called matt munns for liverpool, playing against man u in the community shield, scored 2 goals in the first 20 mins, brilliant performance. Though sadly he tore his hamstring not long after

Reminds me of a young player I had on FM10. He came through the academy at Derby and had been scoring left right and centre for the U18s and then the reserves. As such I thought it was time for him to have a go at the Premier League. He scored 4 goals (not technically his début as he came off the bench for about 5 minutes earlier in the season) by half time before coming off with a broken leg in the second half. Was against a basically relegated Birmingham though. He was never quite the same and I ended up selling him many years later. I always wanted him to come back and play like that day.

on FM09, i think it was, i signed that Russia keeper, Akinfeev for £40m for my Arsenal side, he played a 3.6 on his debut conceeding 5 including him scoring an own goal and giving away a pen he never recovered the whole season, ended up with a season average just above 6, i was gutted and it was the last time i ever signed him in any FM version!!

On a hideously unrelated note, I just want to take issue with how Australians say debut. It's dey-byoo, not day-boo.

The last player to make a debut for me was Arnold Bruggink, and he was totally average. 6.8, no goals, no assists. I don't even think I saw him touch the ball. Seems he took the lack of responsibility as a trequartista a little bit too far.

I gave an italian/english right winger his international debut for England in the group stages of the Euros in 2024... The fans were really annoyed that he wasnt born in England, but he didnt seem to care, went on to get a hat trick and set up 2 goals in a 5-1 win. MoM aswell

on FM09, i think it was, i signed that Russia keeper, Akinfeev for £40m for my Arsenal side, he played a 3.6 on his debut conceeding 5 including him scoring an own goal and giving away a pen he never recovered the whole season, ended up with a season average just above 6, i was gutted and it was the last time i ever signed him in any FM version!!

That's strange, he had an average début for me too on FM10. I think he was at fault for 2 goals or something. He ended up making 1200ish straight appearances for me and overall played in some 1400 matches. He retired at 43, one of my greatest ever.

On a hideously unrelated note, I just want to take issue with how Australians say debut. It's dey-byoo, not day-boo.

The last player to make a debut for me was Arnold Bruggink, and he was totally average. 6.8, no goals, no assists. I don't even think I saw him touch the ball. Seems he took the lack of responsibility as a trequartista a little bit too far.

I don't say day-boo...

That's strange, he had an average début for me too on FM10. I think he was at fault for 2 goals or something. He ended up making 1200ish straight appearances for me and overall played in some 1400 matches. He retired at 43, one of my greatest ever.

He recovered for the 2nd season and put in some good performances, but that 1st season was a complete right off, he made so many mistakes and conceded so many easy goals. I had signed him in previous games and he was superb just that club and at that time didnt agree with him.

I don't say day-boo...

The AFL commentators and some of the newscasters do. It winds me up something rotten. The other thing is that the newspapers refer to teams as singular, rather than plural, for example; Tottenham has beaten Liverpool 2-0, which puts it in prime position for the Europa League spot. The whole thing just seems so grammatically wrong compared to the English media - I need to read every sentence about three times to get it properly.

...but you what?

Hmm?

I don't get it.

dking, your post is in no way related to this thread. Like, not even close.

dking, your post is in no way related to this thread. Like, not even close.

I could argue that neither is your post. Also, I would have to disagree. It was a debut of sorts. Sort of. Kind of. A little bit...maybe, and it was a cool story.

Am I in trouble?

I could argue that neither is your post. Also, I would have to disagree. It was a debut of sorts. Sort of. Kind of. A little bit...maybe, and it was a cool story.

I at least used the word debut without saying "not a debut"

Sounds like you just needed to vent your anger at Gerrard, totally understandable.

It was the closest thread I could find to use for venting my anger without starting a new one!

Ah well, busted, but it was worth a try.

The ones that stick in my mind are:

Stuart Sobers - He was a striker that came into my youth side in the 2011/12 season when I was still in the Evo-Stik Premier Division. He scored 2 goals from 3 shots and got an assist and the Man of the Match award. It was the first sign of great things to come. Since that day he has been my 1st choice striker, always used as a lone striker so he gets the majority of my team goals. Now, half way through the 2014/15 season in League 2 he has 205 goals from 162 appearances in all competitions.

Loris Karius - Another player in my Lancaster City game. Was signed in 2011/12 as a youth prospect, technically good for his age but very weak mentally. I thought I would give him some games in the various Cups I was entered in. His first game he conceded 3 goals. 1 from a penalty he gave away and 2 from absolute howlers. He then gave away 3 more goals in his next 2 games and didn't play again that season. The next year wasn't much better for him, he proved himself to be a decent shot stopper but in the 6 games he played he conceded 10 goals, 7 of them thanks to his own mistakes. Things have turned around for him though, the following season he had a complete change in character. Conceded 22 goals from 35 games with 17 clean sheets and he is now doing a good job for me in League 2 having put his awful start at the club behind him.

Ashley Rose - Another of my own youth products. He came into the side in the 2014/15 season and had huge potential. Straight away he had a spot on the bench, backing up Stuart Sobers, and about 15 games into the season he got his chance when Sobers picked up a knock in training. He had played for us before, but that was only the final 5 minutes of a couple of games, and this was his first start. In the first half he did nothing, he made 3 passes, all 3 of them off target, didn't have a single shot, made 1 run with the ball where he got about 2 yards before being tackled, and looked completely out of his depth. It didn't help that he isn't quick and I had chucked him straight into a tactic designed around a fast striker, but in the second half he looked like a different player. He ended the game with 23 passes, 20 of them on target and 4 of them creating chances for other players, got 2 assists and when he finally got the chance to get a shot away he buried it in the top corner. He then picked up one more goal in his next start but since hten has kind of fizzled out a bit, not having scored since then. He is still banging the goals in for the youth & reserve sides and hopefully we can find a tactic that he can fit into but for now he remains a bit of an oddity.

The AFL commentators and some of the newscasters do. It winds me up something rotten. The other thing is that the newspapers refer to teams as singular, rather than plural, for example; Tottenham has beaten Liverpool 2-0, which puts it in prime position for the Europa League spot. The whole thing just seems so grammatically wrong compared to the English media - I need to read every sentence about three times to get it properly.

Don't get me started on the news casters and the AFL commentators. But hey, I don't have to listen to them and their $1.12 billion deal at least. I've heard worse though. I swear every single person who works at a subway in Australia says Jalapeños as: Jal-lay-pea-noes (yes, that is with a J in the pronunciation).

Hmm?

I don't get it.

Oh, it posted originally (read the quote) as about a line that cut off half way through. I have no idea why...

dking, your post is in no way related to this thread. Like, not even close.

Oh well, it was a good laugh.

I could argue that neither is your post. Also, I would have to disagree. It was a debut of sorts. Sort of. Kind of. A little bit...maybe, and it was a cool story.

Am I in trouble?

Not even remotely close, but I'll forgive you as it's a good story.

It was the closest thread I could find to use for venting my anger without starting a new one!

Ah well, busted, but it was worth a try.

Right on!

My striker's debut consisted of him getting the only goal as we won the Russian Super Cup 1-0

I swear every single person who works at a subway in Australia says Jalapeños as: Jal-lay-pea-noes (yes, that is with a J in the pronunciation).

I've give up on Subway employees. None of them can understand my accent. I tried ordering a ham sub. She looked at me and asked if I'd ordered a clam sub. I said no. Eventually, she told I should order a hyem sub. I think she was definitely more wrong than me.

Debut Alert

After 3 years of waiting my Namibian Monster of a striker has finally arrived. At just over 18, standing 6'8" tall and weighing 100kg he came in with big expectations...

He came off after 5 minutes with an injury!

Annoyed with my first team players under-performing, I threw five regen youngsters in at the deep-end against Barcelona in the league. Five débutantes, all performed heroically in a 2-2 draw, including my Czech winger who bagged a brace. One of those goals was reported as a "wonder goal" and watching in the match engine, a joy to behold.

the worst debut i've ever seen was by Adam Rooney...

signed him in my first season with Southampton to create a formidable partnership in Lambert and Rooney...

first game, misses a penalty in the second minute...10 minutes later he misses an open goal then right on half time gets a straight red for trying to break both legs of the opponent...

to make it worse...game back from suspension he gets sent off again...then, once returned into the starting line up he gets ANOTHER straight red and a 5 game ban...

3 starts...3 straight reds...great start to a career!

Best debut definitely goes to Mark Brewer, a 16 yo MC/DM regen who I signed for 5k from a non-league club and has the potential to be "a good Premier League player" (I was in L1 at the time).

Came on as a sub around the 65th minute and scored the goal of the month from 35 yards to win the game.

the worst debut i've ever seen was by Adam Rooney...

signed him in my first season with Southampton to create a formidable partnership in Lambert and Rooney...

first game, misses a penalty in the second minute...10 minutes later he misses an open goal then right on half time gets a straight red for trying to break both legs of the opponent...

to make it worse...game back from suspension he gets sent off again...then, once returned into the starting line up he gets ANOTHER straight red and a 5 game ban...

3 starts...3 straight reds...great start to a career!

If you'd fined him 2 weeks wages for each red, he'd owe you!

I think you need to re-think your team-talks, sending your striker out to murder someone isn't supposed to happen..

If you'd fined him 2 weeks wages for each red, he'd owe you!

I think you need to re-think your team-talks, sending your striker out to murder someone isn't supposed to happen..

hahahaha i know! maybe my Churchill'esque pep talk was a little too powerful for him!

Signed Bale for Man City on the Demo....broke his leg first match, out for the duration.

I bought Lukaku to Rangers in January he made his debut 3 weeks later, coming off the bench against celtic, scoring to make it 4-1, setting up the fifth and then breaking his leg! eventful ten minutes!

the worst debut i've ever seen was by Adam Rooney...

signed him in my first season with Southampton to create a formidable partnership in Lambert and Rooney...

first game, misses a penalty in the second minute...10 minutes later he misses an open goal then right on half time gets a straight red for trying to break both legs of the opponent...

to make it worse...game back from suspension he gets sent off again...then, once returned into the starting line up he gets ANOTHER straight red and a 5 game ban...

3 starts...3 straight reds...great start to a career!

What I want to know is why Lambert wasn't taking the penalty.

One of my regens tore his thigh muscle in the first minute of his debut. Rather annoying...

One of my regens tore his thigh muscle in the first minute of his debut. Rather annoying...

Yeah, I've had several players get injured on their debut, although nothing long term, thank god.

Had a defender score a hatrick of own goals and get sent off once. Thought I'd give him another chance after his suspension (didn't really have much choice due to injuries mind..) and he got sent off within 7 minutes. Needless to say, I shipped him out quicker than he could blink.

On a hideously unrelated note, I just want to take issue with how Australians say debut. It's dey-byoo, not day-boo.

The last player to make a debut for me was Arnold Bruggink, and he was totally average. 6.8, no goals, no assists. I don't even think I saw him touch the ball. Seems he took the lack of responsibility as a trequartista a little bit too far.

On an even more unrelated note, I detest how they pronounce "derby" in WA. Der-bee rather than dar-bee. Even the eastern states get it right -_-

What I want to know is why Lambert wasn't taking the penalty.

i think i'd just forgot to sort my set pieces after my signings and before the game and it just automatically chose him!

dont worry, lambert was back on pens after that!

On my Bolton save..

Rodrigo

Came on and scored 2 to put win the game 2-1 against Wolves, setting us free of the start of season tangle at the bottom

David Wheater

Injured Rooney for the rest of the season (from midway point), who at that point was top goalscorer by a mile and had Utd 7 points clear. Simple enough, Utd finish the season 3rd And to top it off, Wheater didnt get a card !

In my current Falkirk career save, I signed a young 20 year old regen Danish striker called Michael Larsen and made him the top earner by far for a club of our size, fought off some decent clubs in europe and he promptly scored a goal on his league debut...So far so good....until he tripped himself and ended up with ligament damage for 9 months! 16 games since he returned to action and still no goals....Might be an idea to loan him out to get some confidence back i think!

Best debuts I've had:

In FM08 I had a 17 yr old striker score on his debut in the community shield in the 93rd minute to put me up 4-3.

And in my current save I have a young man named gavin burton. When he was 16, he made his debut for me against bolton, in the league cup, and scored a hattick. Less than 2 weeks later, we played bolton again, this time in the premier league, and young gavin scored another hattrick against them. Not a bad start to his Manchester United career.

On an even more unrelated note, I detest how they pronounce "derby" in WA. Der-bee rather than dar-bee. Even the eastern states get it right -_-

These days they do. Back 5 years ago I swear nobody on this whole bloody continent could say Derby right!

Last night in fact,

2 Debutants for Juve (Moved from Forest).

Pazzini - 15m

Cassani - 12m

Pazzini misses 3 clear cut chances in first 20mins then gets a straight red. Lovely.

Cassani however scores twice from Left back with 10men and gets a 9.4. Very mixed game really.

Lukulu signed from Anderlecht in my Liverpool save played him in 3 different roles to get the best out Of him. He scored on his debut v West Brom but after that he never scored again after two seasons and 72 apps with 2 cup goals(doesn’t count).. Offloaded him to Man City for £25 million he scored 20 in his first season cant be me tactics because Dzeko came in and banged 29 league goals for me.

Lukulu signed from Anderlecht in my Liverpool save played him in 3 different roles to get the best out Of him. He scored on his debut v West Brom but after that he never scored again after two seasons and 72 apps with 2 cup goals(doesn’t count).. Offloaded him to Man City for £25 million he scored 20 in his first season cant be me tactics because Dzeko came in and banged 29 league goals for me.

Sure it can. I'm sure if you put Maradona up front and played him like Dzeko he'd have problems. Just because you tactics work for someone else doesn't mean they couldn't for someone else.

One of my most famous debuts was Djibril Cisse, this was way back before he joined liverpool (must have been 04-5?) cant remember exactly anyways i sold Samual Eto'o from my mallorca squad for a massive fee and brought in Cisse, HATRICK AGAINST REAL MADRID ON DEBUT woooo never will forget that

Sure it can. I'm sure if you put Maradona up front and played him like Dzeko he'd have problems. Just because you tactics work for someone else doesn't mean they couldn't for someone else.

Totally agree. Even just subtle changes to the player instructions can make a big difference to how the play and to getting the best out of the players. I like rotating players, and so regularly make the odd tweak here or there depending on who's playing the current match. This even applies to players who are similar - because similar is not identical!

I have my default tactic set up with a target man striker at STL and a pacy striker at STR (although I'm not averse to switching them around if I see a reason to). I have the STR set to crossing mixed and cross from mixed by default. I have a few pacy strikers at my disposal, and will make quick changes when they play as STR.

I'll tell one of my right-footed pacy striker to cross more often and cross from the byline. I'll tell my left-footed striker (i.e. playing on his weaker side) to cut inside and cross less.

The first guy is only a slightly better crosser (1 point higher) and dribbler (2 points), but is on the right side of the pitch, allowing him to get good crosses in. The second guy is the better finisher (around a goal a a game). Sure, his crossing is also OK, but he is on the wrong foot to be crossing from that position. So while the the attributes are similar at a superficial level, the players won't perform the same with the same instructions in the same position.

So, after much thought I sold a club icon for £8.25 mil. Not because I needed the money, but because I had another 6 strikers who were better than him. He made his début for his new club, he's now out for 9 months! At least it doesn't only happen to the human player!

Got Cardiff City to the Premier League. Signed Jermaine Beckford on a free hoping to get goals along side Ross McCormack. First match against Everton odd enough, he missed a sitter, missed a spot-kick and got sent off with a straight red. All before half time!

Moussa Maazou, Signed from bolton for 10 million pounds. He had 2 good seasons for them leading the epl scoring charts. First game he bossed spurs and scored 2 goals.

Too bad he hasn't scored any others for another 8 games :|

Debut for the "new Ognjen Vukojević"... Yeah, I think he's slightly better than that, but hey. Anyhow, he had a solid game, and was sent off.

Just started a new game as my local team and one of my new signings had a fantastic debut by scoring a hattric

Saw this thread a little while ago and felt a bit jealous cause all my players debuts are totally unremarkable. Then the other day I played the Dutch cup and got drawn against a weak side. So I decided to rest my first team and play a load of reserves and youth players.

One of them is a £60k rated Belarus under 19s forward, who looks alright, but I mainly bought him cause he was so cheap and plays for peanuts and hes only 17 so could develop into a decent player. Started him up front not expecting much, he went on to score 5 of the best goals ive seen since starting this new game!! He tore them a new one, curling them in from outside the box, robbing defenders and rounding the goalkeeper, dribbling the length of the pitch, he was amazing, in the end I was just laughing as he proceeded to set 2 goals up for my other young player.

Everyone played well mind you, the other team was poor, but he rated a 10.0 which is the best ive seen in one of my games. Alexy Rudenok... remember his name!