Alessandro Del Piero took three steps, struck the ball with his right foot, watched it sail up and over the wall, drop quickly and curve away from Newcastle Jets goalkeeper Ben Kennedy to smack into the back of the net.

The 37-year-old leapt into the air, pumped his right fist and veered off towards the sidelines and was mobbed by his team-mates as they rushed to celebrate the Italian’s first A-League goal in the 26th minute of his home debut for Sydney FC.

Unfortunately for the more than 35,000 who had turned up to see Del Piero, the 25-metre goal, his driving runs late in the second half and clever passing, it was not enough as Sydney crashed to a 3-2 loss to the Jets.

“Not enough, but it was a start,” Del Piero said about his goal in a pitchside interview.

“I want to score more goals, I hope.”

Despite Sydney’s loss, the characteristic free-kick, which he had won when he was brought down by Tiago Calvano, was ample demonstration Del Piero had not lost any of the touch that drove him through 19 seasons with Juventus and convinced Sydney to pay him a reported $2.05 million a year to secure his services.

Administrators have positioned Del Piero as a talisman for the A-League in the hope he will raise the profile of the sport among fans, the media and businesses in a crowded sporting marketplace.