Heskey signed for Liverpool on 10 March 2000 in a long-anticipated £11 million move, which, at the time, set the record transfer fee paid by the Merseyside club. Liverpool manager Gérard Houllier looked forward to working with him, but stated that "at his age he is not the finished product". The press saw the move as expensive and risky as Heskey was relatively inexperienced and was not a prolific goalscorer. However, he was held in high regard by both the England under-21 manager, Peter Taylor, and England and Liverpool teammate Michael Owen. Veteran Liverpool striker Ian Rush approved of the signing, noting that Heskey would "give Liverpool a different dimension", bringing strength to the Liverpool strikeforce and complementing Owen and Robbie Fowler's pacey play. Heskey made his debut in an Premier League clash with Sunderland on 11 March 2000 and scored his first goal in a 3–0 victory over Coventry City on 1 April. He finished 1999–2000 with 12 appearances and 3 goals for Liverpool.