Olabade Aluko Starting Debut, Can He Return Stronger, Or Is It The Impossible Climb?

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Watching the first minutes of the game vs. Southampton, you observed Leicester debutant Olabade Aluko. You had a feeling this would not be the ideal place to make your full starting debut for the club.

Southampton had won their last games with tall tallies. They were now at home with good confidence. They thought they could defeat Leicester. Leicester had two wins in a row but still had not played convincingly.

The situation was, of course, unfortunate. Most of the blame must be placed on the person who decided to play him from start. Keeping him on the field was a major fault. It was clear he could soon pick up a second yellow card. With five substitutions possible, strange to see them keeping Aluko on the field. It would have been brutal to do that. However, the scenario must have been evaluated before the game.

Have we seen similar debuts in the past and how will Olabade Aluko go from here. A player that was sent off during his debut was Lionel Messi. He lasted only 47 seconds before being sent off in his first full international for Argentina. He survived well and became an icon in world football.

🦊 #LCFC | Aaron Ramsey was sent off inside the first 45 minutes of his City debut.

Our Matchday Summariser Matty Fryatt was among those who disagreed with the Red Card.

🗣️ Cifuentes, when speaking to BBC Sport Leicester, didn't really want to talk about the decision 👇 pic.twitter.com/BfSXI4fMKk
— BBC Sport Leicester (@BBCRLSport) September 13, 2025

Louis Suarez, Mark van Bommel, Joao Felix, and Thomas Vermalen are other players. They were all sent off in their club or country debuts.

Looking at red cards given to Leicester players in the past we have the following. Aaron Ramsey was the first this season to get a red, also in his debut game. Olabade Aluko was the second. Last season no one received a red. To see to starting debutants this season both getting a red, is a strange happening.

Last season no one was sent off. In the season before, Abdul Fatawu got a red. Wout Faes and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall sent off in 2022-23.

This is something to learn from. It could take a while before he gets a new opportunity. If you look up our previous stars of this football club, such as Peter Shilton, Gary Lineker, and Emile Heskey, you will see they had a relatively long wait. They waited from their starting debut to getting back on the field again for their second league appearance.

We believe Olabade Aluko will overcome this situation. This will not interrupt or disturb him in his future career. He should conduct himself well and take it as something to learn from. Looking at the past, even the best performers in the game have similar experiences.

Below you have the list of red cards received in league action for Leicester in previous seasons.

Red Cards
- 2025-26
  - Aaron Ramsey
  - Olabade Oluko
- 2023-24
  - Abdul Fatawu
- 2022-23
  - Wout Faes
  - Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall
- 2021-22
  - Ayoze Perez
- 2019-20
  - Hamza Choudhury
  - Johnny Evans
  - Caglar Soyuncu
- 2018-19
  - Jamie Vardy
  - Harry Maguire
  - James Maddison
  - Wes Morgan
- 2017-18
  - Wilfred Ndidi
  - Marc Albrighton
  - Ben Chilwell
  - Daniel Amartey
- 2016-17
  - Jamie Vardy