Declan Rice becomes third-youngest to start 300 Premier League games

Declan Rice became the third-youngest player to start 300 Premier League matches when he did so for Arsenal in their fixture against Leeds United in the 25-26 season. He is behind Gareth Barry and Frank Lampard on the list of youngest players to reach the milestone.

Rice, an England international, began his career with West Ham as a youth, made his league debut with them and later moved to Arsenal. The club noted his availability as an important asset, and he reached the 300-start mark in the Premier League during the 25-26 campaign.

Gareth Barry remains the youngest player to reach 300 Premier League starts, having done so at the age of 26 years and 322 days while playing for Aston Villa. Frank Lampard is the second-youngest to reach the mark and rose to prominence at Chelsea as one of the league’s leading goalscoring midfielders.

Rio Ferdinand is recorded as the fourth-youngest player to reach 300 league starts; he began his career with West Ham United, progressed through their development system and made his first-team debut there before moving to Manchester United. The source describes his subsequent career as that of one of the greatest centre-backs in the league.

Wayne Rooney reached 300 Premier League starts at the age of 28 years and 9 days, joining Jamie Carragher and Steven Gerrard as the three Scousers on the list. Rooney is noted for his prime years at Manchester United, where he won many trophies.

Jamie Carragher became the tenth-youngest player to make 300 Premier League starts at 28 years and 357 days and is described as a one-club servant for Liverpool, appearing in 737 matches across all competitions. Raheem Sterling reached his 300th Premier League start at 28 years and 303 days in a career that has spanned Liverpool, Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal.

Steven Gerrard made his 300th Premier League start at 28 years and 274 days; he never won a league title, was a three-time PFA Player of the Year and appeared eight times in the PFA Team of the Year. Sol Campbell made his 300th start at 28 years and 136 days and is described as a physically imposing centre-back who spent most of his career at Arsenal, while Emile Heskey reached 300 Premier League starts at 28 years and 66 days and is noted for his power and his time at Liverpool.

Rice’s 300th appearance came as Arsenal won 4-0 against Leeds United, a result that extended Arsenal’s lead in the title race in the 25-26 season.