David Beckham's Man Utd Debut: Who Played & Where Are They Now?

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The Manchester United legend replaced Andrei Kanchelskis on a cold September League Cup match against Brighton - who else played?

On the surface, a second round League Cup tie from the early '90s is not where most football fans would look for a notable slice of football history. But on September 23, 1992, the competition gave one of England's future greats his first taste of professional football. The match was the first page in one of English football's most celebrated chapters: the career of David Beckham .

The Red Devils travelled down to the south coast, playing out a 1-1 draw against Brighton at the Goldstone Ground in front of 16,649 fans. The 17-year-old Beckham had impressed for the club's youth team, and was rewarded with a spot on the first-team bench.

Sir Alex Ferguson saw the match as an opportunity to bed in a promising talent, bringing him on as a substitute for Andrei Kanchelskis. But who else made the Manchester United team when 'Golden Balls' stepped up to the plate for the very first time in his professional career?

An all-time great for England and Manchester United, Becks lit up Old Trafford for ten seasons with his pinpoint long passing and deadly set pieces. He also spent a brief spell on loan at Preston North End in 1995. The England captain left United in 2003, going on to play for Real Madrid , LA Galaxy, AC Milan, and finally Paris Saint-Germain.

The English keeper debuted for United in 1985, making 63 appearances over 10 years. Walsh would go on to represent Oldham Athletic, Bradford, and Middlesbrough in the Premier League , before finishing his playing career at Wigan Athletic. He has since worked as a goalkeeping coach at various clubs, including Wigan, Derby County, and West Bromwich Albion.

The Republic of Ireland defender spent the majority of his career at Manchester United. He made over 500 appearances for the club and is the joint most successful Irish footballer in history, with 19 trophies — a record he shares with fellow United man Roy Keane and Liverpool great Ronnie Whelan. Post-retirement, Irwin worked as a presenter on MUTV and as a sports columnist for Ireland's Sunday World .

Bruce has led a prolific career both on the pitch and in the dugout. The defender made almost 1,000 professional appearances before venturing into management as a player-manager at Sheffield United. Bruce has held 13 managerial posts since 1998, managing the likes of Newcastle United , Aston Villa, and Sunderland.

Pallister joined United in 1989 from Middlesbrough for £2.3 million — a national record fee for a defender at the time. The England international spent nine seasons at the club before rejoining Middlesbrough for the final three seasons of his career. He has since worked as a football pundit since retiring from the game.

Martin's greatest moment in Manchester United red came in 1990, when he scored the only goal in the FA Cup final replay against Crystal Palace. The England U21 struggled to nail down a regular place and left for Celtic after six seasons at Old Trafford. Since his retirement from football, Martin has dabbled in coaching and worked for MUTV.

The Russian journeyman's least nomadic period was during his four-year stint at Manchester United, where he made just over 150 appearances. Among his many clubs were Rangers , Everton, Southampton, and very briefly, United's bitter rivals Manchester City. Kanchelskis was the player who made way in the 72nd minute to give Beckham his professional debut.

One of the great English players of the 1990s, Ince is also one of the few players to have represented both Manchester United and their rivals Liverpool . Ince represented United for six seasons, before jetting off to Italy to play for Inter Milan in 1995. He would return two years later to sign for Liverpool. Ince went into management after he retired from playing, with the likes of Blackburn Rovers and Reading on his CV.

Webb earned a reputation as a high-scoring midfielder at his three previous clubs, Reading, Portsmouth, and Nottingham Forest . The midfielder scored 103 league goals in 341 appearances, earning him a big move to Manchester United in 1989. However, he failed to recapture his form following an achilles tendon rupture just a month after he signed for the club. Webb left United after three seasons, returning to Forest in 1992. He retired from football in 2000.

The Scottish forward played for United for 11 seasons, before finishing his playing career at his first club, Motherwell. McClair went on to manage United's reserve team in 2001, before graduating to Director of the club's youth academy. He held this role for nine years, from 2006 to 2015.

A prolific forward, Hughes appeared for United in two stints: the first, from 1980 to 1986, and the second, from 1988 to 1995. In between, the Welshman played for Barcelona and Bayern Munich, and went on to play for Chelsea in the late '90s. In coaching, Hughes was notably the manager in charge at Manchester City when they were taken over by the Abu Dhabi United Group in 2008 .

After nine years at Southampton , Wallace joined United in 1989. The England international struggled to hold down a regular place, heading out on loan to Millwall in his final season as a United player. His career came to an end in 1996, when he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Wallace famously ran the London Marathon in 2006 in five-and-a-half days to raise money and awareness for the Danny Wallace Foundation, a charity that helps people suffering with multiple sclerosis. He scored United's goal in this game.

Man Utd Team: Gary Walsh; Denis Irwin, Steve Bruce, Gary Pallister, Lee Martin; Andrei Kanchelskis ( David Beckham, '72 ), Paul Ince, Neil Webb, Danny Wallace; Mark Hughes, Brian McClair.

Brighton Team: Mark Beeney; Paul McCarthy, Steve Foster, Gary Chivers; John Crumplin, Ian Chapman; Dean Wilkins, Matthew Edwards, Clive Walker; Robert Codner, Andy Kennedy.

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