The 29-year-old goalkeeper, who first joined Palace in the summer of 2021 – after impressive spells with Norwich, Doncaster, Plymouth, Bolton and Sunderland – had previously been named on the bench 23 times for the Eagles without making his bow.
But when Sam Johnstone suffered a calf injury with five minutes of regulation time left on the clock, Matthews’ long-awaited opportunity arrived.
And, even though Harvey Elliott scored a fierce drive from distance to win the game for Liverpool against the run of play, the goalkeeper could still take pride in the milestone of both his Premier League and Palace debut.
Matthews told Palace TV: “It’s obviously a disappointing result. I thought the lads were excellent from the first minute to the last minute and it’s a bit of a kick in the teeth to go 1-0 up [and then lose].
“But on a career side, I’m delighted to make my Premier League debut and I’m delighted to make my debut for this football club. I’ve been here three years now. People probably don’t see it but I work as hard as I can off the pitch, and on the pitch as much as possible, so I’m delighted, but obviously overall disappointed with the result.
“I’m 29-years-old now and it’s been a long nine years [since I first joined Norwich in the Championship], but I know how hard I’ve worked and I know how well I’ve done through the years. I’m happy to be here and make my debut, and now I’m going to look forward.”