FA Cup: Seven Debutants who impressed, including Manchester United, West Ham and Southampton starlets

The FA Cup provided some giant-killings over the weekend with Premier League teams coming unstuck against lower league opposition.

Leicester City were knocked out by Newport, Fulham were sent out by Oldham while Championship side Sheffield United lost to National League Barnet.

Cup competitions are a chance to give players their first taste of action and the third round was no different.

A number of young, and not so young, impressed on their first outings for their respective clubs.

Tahith Chong – Manchester United

The talented 19-year-old came off the bench midway through the second half against Reading for his United debut.

It was certainly a popular move from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer with fans cheering his every touch of the ball and the manager praised his performance.

“He had two or three really good moments, as you do when you’re young,” Solskjaer said. “You don’t run the game as a first performance for a 19-year-old.

“But he got the crowd going, and has shown one or two glimpses of what he can do, he has in training anyway.”

Vashon Neufville – Newport County (on loan from West Ham)

Neufville was loaned to Newport from West Ham in time for their third round clash with Leicester City and they will be glad it was completed in time.

The left-back played a vital part in the huge upset where League Two Newport defeated Premier League Leicester 2-1.

His cross in the 85th minute was handled by Marc Albrighton in the box to give Newport a penalty and a chance to win it.

Padraig Amond stepped up to score to send the Welsh club through to the fourth round.

Samir Nasri – West Ham

Nasri played his first match since coming off an 18 month doping ban and proved he still has the talent to play an important part in West Ham’s season.

The 31-year-old showed glimpses of the player he was at Man City in the Hammers’ 2-0 win over Birmingham.

Callum Slattery – Southampton

Slattery made his debut in Southampton’s 2-2 draw with Derby and played the full 90 minutes.

The 18-year-old looks like another talented prospect that has come through the much revered Southampton academy.

“It was a fantastic feeling and it’s what I’ve been waiting for,” he said. “It was a dream come true to make my debut in the FA Cup in front of our fans. The result was more important though and we didn’t get that today.

George Marsh – Tottenham Hotspur

Involved in squads previously, Marsh was finally handed his bow with Spurs 4-0 up.

He played it fairly safe during his time on the pitch but his growth in confidence by the final whistle really showed and overall he put in a fine display.

Whether he will go on to get more minutes is uncertain but the 20-year-old looks to be a safe pair of hands if Mauricio Pochettino’s injury crisis worsens.

Philippe Sandler – Manchester City

The Dutch starlet was, as you might imagine, barely involved during his 23 minute defensive midfield cameo in City’s 7-0 victory over Rotherham but his role did complement Ilkay Gundogan.

With Sandler on the pitch, the German was able to get further forward and he was able to register another three assists for Riyad Mahrez, Nicoas Otamendi, and Leroy Sane.

Adalberto Penaranda – Watford

Finally given international clearance in November, injury issues lengthened the young Venezuelan’s wait for a debut but he finally got it against Woking.
It was against lower league opposition but he looked incredibly lively and with a penchant for the spectacular.

He’ll have better games but he doesn’t look like a flop to us.