As Stan Collymore got his Leicester City career off to a positive start by scoring a hat-trick on his home debut against Sunderland, Emile Heskey's time at Filbert Street was coming to an end.
Amid speculation of strong interest from Liverpool, the 5-2 win over the Wearsiders would be the young striker's last appearance for the Foxes.
Having seen Heskey partner Reds striker Michael Owen during an England Under-18 international a few years earlier, Gerard Houllier was tempted to part with a club-record £11m fee to take the Leicester-born frontman to Anfield 14 years ago today.
Talking of his potential link-up with Owen, Liverpool's new signing said: "I have played with a lot of forwards and we have bonded together and that includes Michael Owen. I found it an exciting prospect to play alongside Michael."
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As for Houllier, the French boss added: "You take a player because he is a talent and because you think he will work out well for the team. The good thing is that he knows a lot of our players. At his age he is not the finished product. Like every player here he will want to progress and improve."
It took Heskey five outings to fire in his first goal for the Merseysiders and he added two more before the end of the campaign. The following season he would prove himself to be a key asset as his 22 goals helped Liverpool to win the FA Cup, the League Cup and the UEFA Cup.
After that, though, his goal contribution dwindled and in the summer of 2004 he was sold to Birmingham City for an initial price of £3.25m. Spells with Wigan Athletic and Aston Villa then followed, before he joined his current club Newcastle Jets, of the A-League, in 2012.
In total, Heskey made 223 appearances for Liverpool in all competitions, scoring 60 goals in the process.
Liam Apicella
