Some managers have always been more than happy to hand a player their debut, but not all of them have been brave enough to make wholesale changes that involve offering players their first ever start for Liverpool.
As you’ll see from the list below, there is a standout year in which that is exactly what happened, but for very good reason:
| Number of Debutants | Opponent | Competition | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Aston Villa | League Cup 5th round | 0-5 |
| 6 | Sheffield Wednesday | Premier League | 2-1 |
| 5 | Stoke City | Premier League | 1-0 |
| 5 | Exeter City | FA Cup 3rd round | 2-2 |
| 5 | MK Dons | League Cup 3rd round | 2-0 |
| 5 | Shrewsbury Town | FA Cup 4th round replay | 1-0 |
| 4 | Bradford City | 1st Division | 3-1 |
| 4 | Bury | 1st Division | 3-0 |
| 4 | Wolves | 1st Division | 3-1 |
| 4 | Hull City | League Cup 2nd round 2L | 4-2 |
| 4 | Grazer AK | Champions L. 3rd QR. 1st leg | 2-0 |
| 4 | Reading | League Cup 3rd round | 4-3 |
| 4 | Northampton Town | League Cup 3rd round | 2-2 |
| 4 | Sunderland | Premier League | 1-1 |
| 3 | Middlesbrough I. | 2nd Division | 2-0 |
| 3 | Bury | Test Match | 0-1 |
| 3 | Stoke | 1st Division | 2-2 |
| 3 | Nottingham Forest | 1st Division | 1-2 |
| 3 | Burton United | 2nd Division | 2-0 |
| 3 | Sheffield United | 1st Division | 1-0 |
| 3 | Wolves | 1st Division | 0-1 |
| 3 | Oldham Athletic | 1st Division | 2-1 |
| 3 | Wimbledon | Premier League | 1-1 |
| 3 | Bradford City | Premier League | 1-0 |
| 3 | Maccabi Haifa | Champions L. 3rd QR. 1st leg | 2-1 |
| 3 | Aston Villa | Premier League | 2-1 |
| 3 | Rabotnicki | Europa League 3QR 1L | 2-0 |
| 3 | Young Boys | Europa League GS | 5-3 |
| 3 | Stoke City | Premier League | 1-0 |
| 3 | Southampton | Premier League | 2-1 |
| 3 | Manchester City | Premier League | 1-3 |
| 3 | Arsenal | Premier League | 4-3 |
| 3 | West Ham United | Premier League | 4-0 |
| 3 | Wolves | FA Cup 3rd round | 1-2 |
| 3 | Everton | FA Cup 3rd round | 1-0 |
| 3 | Lincoln City | League Cup 3rd round | 7-2 |
| 3 | Norwich City | League Cup 3rd round | 3-0 |
The most debuts in one game came in a match against Aston Villa in 2019 when the Liverpool first team had flew to Qatar in order to take part in the FIFA Club World Cup final. For reasons known only to the authorities, Liverpool’s League Cup match against the Birmingham side was not allowed to be delayed, in spite of the fact that it was taking place 24 hours before the match Qatar.
As a result, Jürgen Klopp had no choice but to take his first team squad with him and ask Neil Critchley to take charge. Liverpool’s average age was 19.5, whilst Villa’s was 28.09. In the end, a 5-0 loss was a creditable scoreline.
December 17, 2019: Liverpool lose 5-0 to Aston Villa after fielding an XI of academy players in the League Cup 👦
Today: Aston Villa will field an XI of academy players against Liverpool in the #FACup 👦
Time for revenge? 🧐 pic.twitter.com/9QPVgp6Z8t
— GOAL (@goal) January 8, 2021
It is not all that surprising to see how many times debuts have been given in the cups, with the League Cup, FA Cup and Europa League all featuring highly. What is something of a surprise is how many times a decent number of debutants have occurred in the Premier League and First Division.
