Coincidentally, the landmark also falls just six days shy of the anniversary of his second Palace debut, when he kicked-off against Fulham in a 2-1 win at Craven Cottage on 24th October 2020.
But it was 17 years since Clyne officially graduated from the Crystal Palace Academy, with his senior debut on 18th October, 2008.
The then-17-year-old had been with Palace for three years after joining from Tottenham Hotspur aged 14.
Reflecting on Clyne's first arrival, Academy Director Gary Issott said in 2019: "Clyney was struggling with the travel to Tottenham, as he was living with him mum in Brixton.
"Spurs let him go, and of course I knew him and spoke to his mum – so I said we’d take him. He was an Under-14. That was the best free transfer we’ve probably ever had!"
Clyne's first competitive game in red and blue came against Barnsley in a late Championship clash at Selhurst Park. Neil Warnock handed the youngster his debut in a golden age of Academy talent, something he did for multiple Palace prospects such as Victor Moses and Sean Scannell.
Academy Graduates 2007-10
| 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lee Hills | Ashley Robinson | James Comley | Alex Wynter |
| John Bostock | Ben Kudjodi | Kieron Cadogan | Wilfried Zaha |
| Victor Moses | Kieron Djilali | Nathaniel Pinney | Matthew Parsons |
| Ryan Hall | Nathaniel Clyne | - | - |
| Sean Scannell | Rhoys Wiggins | - | - |
It proved to be a smart move by Warnock, with Palace going on the trump Tykes 3-0 – goals coming from Ben Watson (two) and Shefki Kuqi.
In fact, the opening goal came through a Palace Academy link-up, with Moses fouled in the box to tee-up Watson's successful penalty. Watson, of course, made his debut in red and blue aged 17 in 2003.
Clyne played the full 90 minutes and enjoyed a relatively solid performance, keeping a clean sheet in the process. He was, however, replaced by the returning Danny Butterfield for the following game (a 1-0 loss away to Birmingham City), but was not deterred; going on to make 28 further appearances in all competitions.
He performed so well across the 08/09 season that he earned Young Player of the Season for that campaign, and the following one, too. He also scooped Football League Young Player of the Year in 2010, progressed to Palace Player of the Year for 2010/11 and made the PFA Team of the Year in 2011/12.
The then-England Under-21 international would depart that summer amidst Premier League overtures from Southampton, where his further development warranted a transfer to Liverpool in 2015 – and the opportunity to play UEFA Europa and Champions League football in the seasons to follow.
But with injuries curtailing his Anfield career in its latter stages, Clyne returned to the Eagles having amassed 137 appearances for Crystal Palace, 358 domestic games overall, 14 England caps, and both Europa League and Champions League runners-up medals.
He has since gone on to feature over 100 times in the last five seasons, as Palace have gone on to lift a first-ever major trophy and consolidated their status as a Premier League force to be reckoned with.
All of that from a successful debut 17 years ago under the Selhurst lights: Nathaniel Clyne, he's one of our own.