Joe Knight thanks Albion academy for Premier League debut

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Academy product made his Premier League debut in win over Leeds.

Neil Moxley

2025-11-05T06:00+00:00

Joe Knight came on for the final minutes of our 3-0 win over Leeds United. 📷 by Simon Roe.

Joe Knight reflected on a whirlwind 24 hours that saw him take a Premier League bow before saying a heartfelt ‘Thank you’ to everyone who helped him make it.

The midfielder made a cameo appearance from the bench towards the end of Albion’s win over Leeds United on Saturday.

He did so alongside another academy graduate, Nehemiah Oriola, who both stepped out at the Amex during the 3-0 win.

Joe Knight and Miah Oriola made their Premier League debuts in the win over Leeds. 📷 by Paul Hazlewood.

But there was to be no rest for the pair as they were whisked north, travelling to link up with the rest of Shannon Ruth’s Under-21s ahead of a game against Leeds' Under-21s.

And the duo went straight into the starting XI for the 2-2 draw at the LNER Community Stadium in York.

Knight said, “When we were driving up after the game on Saturday, on one level, I couldn’t believe it happened. But as a player you always think it is going to happen. And when it did, it was: ‘Here we go’ - and you just fall back to what you do every day.

Joe Knight shakes referee Michael Oliver's hand after the victory. 📷 by Paul Hazlewood.

“You work all of those years for that moment - and it felt great when that moment arrived - but you’ve got to come back down quickly. So, it’s been good but you’ve always got to be ready and I went up to Leeds and put in a performance for the under-21s, which is what is expected of me.

“That’s my job. We've still got a job to do, whether we scored in the Premier League or done whatever, we have still got to perform. The difference is that there were 30,000 people with their eyes on you!”

Incredibly, despite the fact that Knight is 20, he was the oldest of the five substitutes blooded by head coach Fabian Hurzeler.

Congrats to Joe and Miah on their senior debuts! 👏 pic.twitter.com/qLQCKZHZeH
— Brighton & Hove Albion (@OfficialBHAFC) November 1, 2025

Alongside the midfielder, Babis Koustoulas, (18) Stefanos Tzimas, (19) Tommy Watson (19) and Nehemiah Oriola (18) can now all say they have played in the top-flight of English football.

Knight continued, “I was about to go to bed and I saw someone had posted that fact on Twitter and I didn’t know that. It’s known at the football club that we are bringing through young players and for them to come on is a great achievement by the club.

“We’re all working towards the same thing but for me and Miah to come through the academy and to get a debut on Saturday, it was great. A lot of people have put in a lot of hard work to get me this far and I want to say thank you to them for helping me to achieve one of my goals.”