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The Magnificent Seven: Premier League openers

There’s only 10 of these every season you know.

1. The original.

What better place to start than with the first ever goal scored in the Premier League. Brian Deane took only five minutes to make us all sit up and take notice of this ‘new division one’ with no backpass rule.

YouTube credit: BladesUnitedCoUk

2. Dancing in the Riverside.

Just when the football world had gotten used to Middlesbrough boasting a world class talent. They went and added Fabrizio Ravanelli to the ranks.

Recently, the Riverside Stadium has become a ghostly relic of past glory, but on the opening day of the 1996/7 season, Liverpool were the first defence to come up against the ‘White Feather’.

YouTube credit: youaremyboroTV

3. Introducing: ‘The Klinsmann’

By the summer of 1994 English football fans were growing wise to the dastardly deeds of Johnny Foreigner. Yes, all in blighty were now aware that diving existed in football. Who better to blame for this than a German.

Step forward Jurgen Klinsmann to show off that famous south-German wit. When Sheffield Wednesday fans held up diving scorecards to goad him,  he responded in the best possible fashion: scoring goals and diving a little more.

YouTube credit: chesneyincognito

4. Dream debut.

In the summer of 2000, Gianluca Vialli convinced Ken Bates to pay £5.6M for Mario Stanic. For 12 glorious minutes in the August sunshine it all seemed worthwhile.

Along with this wonder-strike, Stanic would wrap up the scoring in the 4-2 win over West Ham. Incidentally, the Irons had their own goalscoring debutant that day; one Freddie Kanoute.

YouTube credit: Tankeduptonite

5. Shock and awe.

If there were any doubts that Ian Holloway would continue his cavalier approach to football then they were quickly dispelled. Blackpool arrived at the DW Stadium for what many thought would be the earliest ever relegation dogfight. Instead, they were rampant. Life in Wigan has never been quite the same since.

YouTube credit: EPLcentral

6. Everton gunned down.

Three years ago, Denilson kick-started Arsenal’s season with a thunderous strike into Tim Howard’s top corner. Against one of the league’s worst starters, they would not ease off the pedal. If you’re an Arsenal fan and still reading then we’re sure you agree it’s a little sad watching Cesc Fabregas and Robin van Persie combining to such deadly effect.

If you’re not an Arsenal fan: this video is a little Gunner-centric so, to avoid the Pravda, skip to the minute mark and jump out after 3.30.
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xaegzl_arsenal-09-10-the-response_sport

DailyMotion credit: Gunnnersaurus

7.  The Special One arrives in style.

With the Roman Abramovich axe having taken the scalp of Claudio Ranieri, Jose Mourinho took off his Champions League medal and tucked it safely into his back pocket as he headed for Heathrow. First on his radar was the man he sought supplant on the highest perch of the Premier League.

This was not a classic by any means. Chelsea were stuttering; adapting from the haphazard approach of Ranieri into the rigid early-Mourinho framework. Manchester United, meanwhile, were short of enough defensive options to require Roy Keane at centre back and it was his positional sense which allowed Eidur Gudjohnsen in for the only goal of the game.

YouTube credit: kapidako

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