Every England international to score on their debut since 2000

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The Football Faithful

·22 de marzo de 2025

Every England international to score on their debut since 2000

Myles Lewis-Skelly became the latest England footballer to score on his debut for the national team, netting the opening goal in a 2-0 win over Albania on Friday.

The Arsenal starlet is the 16th player since the turn of the century to score in his first game for the Three Lions, ensuring he will forever possess a little slice of history alongside some illustrious (and forgettable) names who achieved the same feat.

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Every England international to score on his debut since 2000:

Darius Vassell

There are worse ways to mark your international debut than by scoring a bicycle kick. Darius Vassell’s spectacular finish against the Netherlands in February 2002 got his England career off to a great start. He went on to score six goals in 22 appearances, but it ended in a bad way.

The former Aston Villa and Manchester City forward missed England’s final penalty against Portugal at Euro 2004, his last ever act for the Three Lions.

Francis Jeffers

Wayne Rooney and Francis Jeffers both debuted for England alongside each other in the second-half of a 3-1 defeat to Australia in 2003.

Rooney blanked, whereas the ex-Arsenal and Everton striker scored the only goal of the game. The former went on to become the country’s leading goal scorer, whereas Jeffers never won another cap.

Read – The most remarkable international debuts in the modern era

Shaun Wright-Phillips

The excitement surrounding the young Shaun Wright-Phillips multiplied when the Man City winger scored a superb solo goal on his international debut in 2004. Picking up the ball from within his own half, he waltzed unperturbed into Ukraine’s box before dispatching the ball in the far corner.

Despite winning the Premier League with Chelsea in 2005, Wright-Phillips’ career never reached the heights expected of him. He did, however, earn more England caps (36) than his dad, Ian Wright (33), which feels very weird.

Kieran Richardson

Another young starlet whose career fizzled out, Kieran Richardson got off to a flying start with England. Fresh off helping West Brom complete the Great Escape, the Manchester United academy graduate scored a brace against the USA in 2005, including a brilliant free-kick, on his debut.

Richardson went on to win eight caps, but never scored for the Three Lions again. A Premier League winner with United, he would later play for a host of lower-half clubs such as Sunderland, Fulham and Aston Villa.

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David Nugent

‘The Nuge’ scored inarguably the greatest England goal of all time in his one and only appearance in 2007. Finished like a man who knew he would never get another chance.

Steven Caulker

Another one-cap wonder with a 100% goalscoring record for England, Steven Caulker scored in a friendly against Sweden in 2011.

Unfortunately for him the goal is barely a footnote in what was a thrilling match dominated by Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s four-goal salvo, which included that overhead kick.

Read – From Sven’s lowest moment to the wally with a brolly: England’s worst qualifier defeats in recent history

Rickie Lambert

What a day the 14th of August 2013 was for Rickie Lambert. The Southampton striker made his debut for England at the age of 31, scored with his first touch after coming off the bench, and had the birth of his third child.

“If that’s the only moment I’m going to have in an England shirt – hopefully not – I couldn’t have wished for it to have been any better,” he said afterwards.

It wasn’t the former Liverpool player’s only contribution to the national cause, as he went on to score twice more for his country and go to the World Cup in 2014. Lambert also provided three assists across his 11 caps, all for Danny Welbeck.

Andros Townsend

Making his international debut at 22 years of age, Andros Townsend was actually decent for England across his 13 caps, scoring three goals.

The ex-Spurs and Crystal Palace winger got off the mark in the 78th minute against Montenegro in 2013, belting a low swerving shot from range just before being subbed off.

Read – English-born footballers who represent other countries at international level

Harry Kane

In March 2015 a certain former Tottenham Hotspur striker by the name of Harry Kane scored on his England debut in a 4-0 win over Lithuania. Whatever happened to that guy?

Marcus Rashford

Having scored on his Premier League, Champions League, Europa League, League Cup and under-21 international debuts, it stands to rights that Marcus Rashford would also score on his first appearance for the England senior team.

And so it came to be, the Manchester United forward got on the scoresheet during a Euro 2016 warm-up match against Australia at the Stadium of Light after just three minutes. It made him the youngest Englishman to score on his international debut.

Despite manager Roy Hodgson saying only a month earlier that he was “unlikely” to be in the final 23-man squad, Rashford did indeed go to France. He replaced Adam Lallana in the 2-1 group stage win over Wales to become England’s youngest ever player at a European Championship.

Callum Wilson

The first ever Bournemouth player to score for England, Callum Wilson found the net on his debut during a 3-0 friendly win over the United States in 2018. Now at Newcastle United, the striker’s international has failed to catch fire; he’s scored one additional goal across nine caps, the last of which came in 2023.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin

Following a blistering start to the 2020/21 Premier League campaign, scoring eight goals in five games, Dominic Calvert-Lewin got a call-up to the national side in October 2020. The Everton striker headed home during a 3-0 friendly win over Wales, and he’s since gone on to score a further three goals for England.

Read – The youngest England debutants in history

Ollie Watkins

Aston Villa forward Ollie Watkins got his first call-up from Southgate to join England’s 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign.

During a 5-0 win over minnows San Marino, the Torquay-born footballer came off the bench to score with a low strike into the left corner. He didn’t become an England regular immediately, but he did go to Euro 2024 where he scored the winning goal against the Netherlands to send the team to the final.

Curtis Jones

The Liverpool midfielder kicked off his England career with a deft flick against Greece in the 2024 Uefa Nations League. Jones could very well be a key cog in Thomas Tuchel’s side ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

Taylor Harwood-Bellis

The Southampton centre-back was one of four players to score on their England bow during last November’s 5-0 win over the Republic of Ireland. Anthony Gordon, Conor Gallagher and Jarrod Bowen all got off the mark before Harwood-Bellis headed home late on to complete the rout at Wembley.

Myles Lewis-Skelly

It took just 19 minutes for Myles Lewis-Skelly to find the net on his England debut. The Londoner was released in the box by Jude Bellingham before slotting the ball between the Albanian goalkeeper’s legs. The 18-year-old overtakes Rashford as the youngest male England player to score on his debut.