Jadon Sancho was handed a first start for Manchester United but there was no hat-trick and an assist like Rooney delivered on his club debut in the Champions League 17 years ago.
Unfortunately, there was not a lot of anything from the £73 million summer signing although he nearly gifted Wolves an opening goal.
The 21-year-old Sancho, a fantastic prospect, will have many better days in a United shirt compared to this 72-minute run-out before being replaced by Anthony Martial.
Yet Cristiano Ronaldo’s arrival is still an added complication, but a fascinating one, for the England winger who thought he was the main attraction arriving at Old Trafford this summer.
Although so did everyone else.
Sancho has become the club’s third biggest signing behind Paul Pogba and Harry Maguire. United’s shirts with number 25 on the back will have been flying off the shelves until last week.
And overnight almost, Sancho has found himself overshadowed at his new club although maybe, as he looks to settle in, that is not necessarily a bad thing.
In the away match against Wolves, there was not much razzmatazz surrounding someone making his full debut for the club after such a massive move.
The talk was still about someone currently in Lisbon rather than the Black Country.
In a 1-0 win for United over Wolves, it was a forgettable performance from Sancho. He combined well enough with Luke Shaw but had little joy getting past Wolves right wing-back Nelson Semedo.
Sancho was fortunate to avoid playing a part in an early Wolves goal after a miscued header helped create a chance for Joao Moutinho.
His first touch was good and some of his passing was crisp but it was either backwards or sidewards and he struggled to find space.
In the second-half, he became increasingly isolated. Sancho could have few complaints over his substitution.
Eight minutes later, it was smiles all round as the winner was scored by Mason Greenwood who received a pass from Raphael Varane, someone who enjoyed a more successful debut.
Sancho broke all sorts of records in the Bundesliga and he could do the same in the Premier League.
But now as a Manchester United player – and a very expensive one – the demands on Sancho have now increased a notch and his first game for United was a reminder that he still has a lot of work to do.