Wayne Rooney’s Manchester United debut: a hat-trick against Fenerbahce (2004)
Wayne Rooney’s Manchester United debut came on Tuesday 28 September 2004: a hat-trick against Fenerbahce in a 6-2 Champions League win at Old Trafford, at 18 years and 340 days old. His first goal came on 17 minutes, his second on 28, and the third was a free kick chipped over the wall on 54. He then set up David Bellion for the sixth. Ryan Giggs and Ruud van Nistelrooy scored the others; Fenerbahce replied through Marcio Nobre and Tuncay Sanli.
He had signed four weeks earlier for a world-record fee for a teenager, still recovering from the broken foot he suffered at Euro 2004.
Key Facts
- Played on Tuesday 28 September 2004 at Old Trafford, matchday two of Group D in the 2004-05 UEFA Champions League, kick off 7.45pm, referee Frank De Bleeckere.
- Manchester United won 6-2, leading 3-0 at half time. Giggs scored on 7 minutes, Rooney on 17, 28 and 54, van Nistelrooy on 78, Bellion on 81; Nobre on 47 and Tuncay on 60.
- At 18 years and 340 days, Rooney is the youngest player to score a hat-trick on a Champions League debut.
- His first appearance for Manchester United and his first in European club football, 96 days after he broke a bone in his foot at Euro 2004. The hat-trick was his first senior competitive one.
- A world-record fee for a teenager: around £27m guaranteed, rising towards £30m with add-ons.
- The attendance was 67,128. Cristiano Ronaldo, then 19, was an unused substitute.
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The Night the Price Tag Stopped Being a Question
Ninety-Six Days Between a Broken Foot and His Debut
On 24 June 2004, Rooney limped out of England’s European Championship quarter-final against Portugal after 27 minutes, hurt in a challenge with Jorge Andrade. Sven-Goran Eriksson expected him out “maybe a month”. It became three, and 96 days passed before his first minute in a United shirt.
The signing beat two deadlines in as many days. Rooney joined on 31 August 2004, the last day of the English transfer window, then passed his medical and completed the paperwork before noon the next day, the cut-off for registering players in that season’s Champions League. Had United missed that second deadline, their new signing could not have played in the competition that autumn.
So he was registered, and then he did not play. Four fixtures went by without him, among them the 2-2 draw away to Lyon in the group opener on 15 September and a 1-0 win at Tottenham on 25 September. Three days after Tottenham, Sir Alex Ferguson handed him a full debut against Fenerbahce, a European night rather than a league game.
How Much Did Manchester United Pay Everton for Rooney?
The fee made Rooney the most expensive teenager in the world: around £27m guaranteed, rising towards £30m with add-ons. Reported figures vary, because the deal was staged and because euro and sterling values were converted at different times, but the shape is simple enough, a world record for an 18-year-old.
The performance answered anyone who reckoned United had overpaid for a boy of 18. Ferguson had already called him “the best young player this country has seen in 30 years”.
Six Goals, a Hat-trick for Rooney
Fenerbahce, the Turkish champions, were beaten inside half an hour. Eric Djemba-Djemba won the ball deep in United’s half, Kleberson carried it down the left, and Giggs headed in the cross on 7 minutes. Ten minutes later van Nistelrooy slid Rooney through, and the finish was left-footed from around 20 yards. On 28 minutes Giggs found him, Umit Ozat was sent the wrong way by a drop of the shoulder, and the second went in with the other foot.
Both Fenerbahce goals came from corners United could not clear. Nobre scored from close range within a minute of the restart, and Tuncay finished a rebound after Roy Carroll parried on 60 minutes. In between came the goal everyone remembers: a free kick just outside the box on 54 minutes, older heads standing over it, and the 18-year-old taking it anyway and chipping it over the wall.
| Minute | Scorer | Team | How | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | Ryan Giggs | Manchester United | Header, Kleberson cross | 1-0 |
| 17 | Wayne Rooney | Manchester United | Left foot, van Nistelrooy pass | 2-0 |
| 28 | Wayne Rooney | Manchester United | Right foot, Giggs pass | 3-0 |
| 47 | Marcio Nobre | Fenerbahce | Close range from a corner | 3-1 |
| 54 | Wayne Rooney | Manchester United | Direct free kick | 4-1 |
| 60 | Tuncay Sanli | Fenerbahce | Rebound after a Carroll save | 4-2 |
| 78 | Ruud van Nistelrooy | Manchester United | Chest control, Fletcher cross | 5-2 |
| 81 | David Bellion | Manchester United | Rooney header assist | 6-2 |
The Record Rooney Did Not Set
Rooney is constantly called the youngest scorer of a Champions League hat-trick. He was not. That record belongs to Raul Gonzalez, 18 years and 113 days when he scored three for Real Madrid against Ferencvaros on 18 October 1995, 227 days younger than Rooney. Rooney’s record is narrower and better: the youngest hat-trick by a player on his Champions League debut.
Even UEFA’s own Champions League hat-trick list muddies this. It dates Vincenzo Iaquinta’s debut treble for Udinese against Panathinaikos to 14 September 2004, a fortnight before Rooney. That is a typo: Udinese were not in that season’s group stage, and Iaquinta’s hat-trick came a year later, on 14 September 2005, with his goals on 28, 73 and 76.
Christoph Daum, whose defence had just been taken apart, offered the most generous verdict of the night: “Maybe he will become the player of the century.” Sir Bobby Charlton had scored twice on his own United debut as an 18-year-old in 1956; Rooney had gone one better. The return went the other way: Fenerbahce beat Manchester United 3-0 in Istanbul on 8 December.
READ MORE: More Old Trafford individualists in our Football Mavericks films →
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About the Rooney Manchester United Debut (2004)
What was the score in Manchester United v Fenerbahce on 28 September 2004?
Manchester United beat Fenerbahce 6-2 at Old Trafford on 28 September 2004, leading 3-0 at half time. It was matchday two of Group D in the 2004-05 Champions League, United’s first win of the group after a 2-2 draw at Lyon. Wayne Rooney scored three on his club debut.
Who scored in Manchester United 6-2 Fenerbahce in September 2004?
Ryan Giggs scored on 7 minutes, Wayne Rooney on 17, 28 and 54, Ruud van Nistelrooy on 78 and David Bellion on 81 in the 6-2 win on 28 September 2004. Marcio Nobre replied on 47 and Tuncay Sanli on 60. Rooney’s third, on 54 minutes, was a free kick chipped over the wall.
Why did the Rooney Manchester United debut come a month after he signed in 2004?
Rooney was still recovering from the bone he broke at Euro 2004, so the debut waited on his fitness. The transfer was completed on 31 August 2004, in time for the next day’s Champions League registration deadline. The injury from the Portugal quarter-final on 24 June 2004 kept him out 96 days, and he missed four fixtures.
Did Wayne Rooney assist a goal on his Manchester United debut against Fenerbahce in 2004?
Yes. Rooney set up David Bellion for the sixth goal on 81 minutes of the 6-2 win on 28 September 2004, heading a defensive clearance into Bellion’s path.
Was Wayne Rooney the youngest scorer of a Champions League hat-trick when he faced Fenerbahce in 2004?
No. The youngest Champions League hat-trick belongs to Raul Gonzalez, at 18 years and 113 days, for Real Madrid against Ferencvaros on 18 October 1995. Rooney, on 28 September 2004, was 227 days older. His record is narrower: the youngest hat-trick by a player on his Champions League debut.
How much did Manchester United pay Everton for Wayne Rooney in 2004?
Manchester United paid a world-record fee for a teenager: around £27m guaranteed, rising towards £30m with add-ons. Everton were also due a further payment if Rooney was still at Old Trafford three years later, plus a share of any future sale. Reported figures vary because the deal was staged and because euro and sterling values were converted at different times.
Where was Manchester United 6-2 Fenerbahce played in 2004, who refereed it and what was the attendance?
Manchester United 6-2 Fenerbahce was played at Old Trafford on 28 September 2004 with a 7.45pm kick off. Frank De Bleeckere of Belgium refereed, and the attendance was 67,128. It was Group D of the 2004-05 Champions League.
Who played for Fenerbahce against Manchester United on 28 September 2004?
Fenerbahce were managed by Christoph Daum, with Rustu Recber in goal, Umit Ozat as captain, and Alex de Souza, Pierre van Hooijdonk, Marcio Nobre and Tuncay Sanli in the forward line. They lined up in a 4-2-3-1, and Nobre and Tuncay scored in the 6-2 defeat on 28 September 2004.
Did Cristiano Ronaldo play in Manchester United 6-2 Fenerbahce in 2004?
No. Cristiano Ronaldo, then 19, was named among the substitutes on 28 September 2004 and stayed there. Ferguson’s three substitutions were Darren Fletcher, Phil Neville and Liam Miller.
What happened when Manchester United played Fenerbahce again in December 2004?
Fenerbahce beat Manchester United 3-0 in Istanbul in December 2004, the reverse of the 6-2 at Old Trafford ten weeks earlier. Rooney had scored three in the first meeting, but he was not in the squad for the return: United had already qualified and Ferguson sent a reserve side to Istanbul. Tuncay Sanli, who had scored at Old Trafford, scored all three.
Rooney Manchester United Debut (2004)
A broken bone in his foot, a registration deadline beaten by hours, four fixtures watched from the treatment table, and then 90 minutes that made the fee look cheap. For more nights when a career turned on one evening, keep exploring our On This Day series, and our films on English football’s fiercest rivalries.
Sources: UEFA, Guinness World Records, Sky Sports, ESPN, 11v11, Transfermarkt, RSSSF.
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