Interview James Hilsum
Rennes 4-3 Bordeaux
March 23, 1996
Ligue 1
“This was my first senior appearance, at Rennes – I came on as a substitute for a minute or two. It was a defining moment, as that’s always the objective when you join a club’s academy, and it happened in my fourth year. I’d been in the squad on a few occasions before that, but never managed to get off the bench. I was training regularly with the first team, though, and was hopeful my opportunity would come pretty soon. It wasn’t planned when I did come on and I felt nervous, but those first steps on the field were amazing. We won the match 4-3, so it was great to seal three points on my debut. Sylvain Wiltord, who later joined Arsenal, scored for us in that game. Bordeaux also had the likes of Bixente Lizarazu and Christophe Dugarry starring for them at the time.”
Real Madrid 2-0 Inter
September 16, 1998
Champions League
“My first game for Inter, against Real Madrid in the Champions League group stage, and we had to play it in Seville [due to crowd trouble at the Bernabeu months earlier]. I came on at half-time because Salvatore Fresi had just been sent off. I had to do a quick warm-up and felt like I was being thrown in the deep end. We were up against a great Real Madrid team, who were reigning European champions and had Roberto Carlos, Raul and Savio in their line-up. But our side wasn’t bad, with Ronaldo, Javier Zanetti and Diego Simeone. Even though we lost 2-0, I think I had a good game and it was the first time I’d ever played in a European competition. The quality of the match was fantastic – it was on another level and gave me the confidence to play at the highest level.”
Liverpool 2-3 Man United
September 11, 1999
Premier League
“My debut for Manchester United was special for so many reasons, especially because I’d been linked with a move to Liverpool. I flew over to England on the Thursday, and two days later I was on the pitch starting at Anfield. The noise was unbelievable and the fact I didn’t speak a lot of English actua
