When Alhaji Kamara entered the game in Kansas City Friday night in the 85th minute, his long road back to the field was well documented. So too, was the arduously-long trip he and his new teammates endured just to arrive in Kansas that day. But once he stepped on the field at Children's Mercy Park, the Sierra Leonean wasted no time doing what he does best. Just 33 seconds after replacing Lamar Neagle, Kamara thundered home from 12 yards.
The goal was the fastest ever for a player making his MLS debut, and was the 48th occurrence in which a substitute scored within one minute of entering the field of play. No player has ever started in his league debut and scored in the first minute.
Coincidentally, the player who holds the record for fastest-ever goal by a substitute is a new teammate of Kamara: Álvaro Saborío. The Costa Rican scored just 18 seconds after being subbed on while playing for Real Salt Lake on September 6, 2014. While there is still more work to be done, the record-breaking debut has head coach Ben Olsen excited. "He still has a long way to go," Olsen said after the match on Friday. "But the one thing about him is that you can say his physical presence is real. He knows what to do in the box and he is going to be a nice addition."
