Declan Rice is among the best holding midfielders throughout Europe and has been an Arsenal player since July 2023, so here is everything that you need to know about him.
The Gunners smashed the bank to sign Rice in a club-record transfer from West Ham United to strengthen boss Mikel Arteta’s engine room. Arsenal paid their London rivals £100m, plus a further £5m in add-ons. He also agreed to sign a five-year contract with a one-year option.
Moving to Emirates Stadium marked a huge change for Rice, having been a West Ham player since 2013. He joined the Hammers’ academy while 14 years old when Chelsea dropped the future England anchor. Rice went on to get his first-team debut against Burnley in May 2017.
Rice initially broke through at West Ham as a centre-back on course to play for the Republic of Ireland. But he switched allegiances to England after picking the country of his birth over the nation of his paternal grandparents in 2019. He also truly arose as a midfielder in 2018.
Slaven Bilic awarded Rice his West Ham first-team debut at 18 years, four months and seven days old. He went on to play 245 games for 15 goals and 13 assists. Rice’s last West Ham act was also lifting the UEFA Conference League in 2022/23. But who is Rice outside of football?
How old is Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice?
As of the time of writing, Declan Rice of Arsenal is 25 years old and was born on January 14, 1999. But he did not join an academy until Rice was seven when Chelsea signed him in 2006.
Where was Declan Rice born?
Declan Rice was born in Kingston-upon-Thames to his parents dad, Sean Rice, and his mum, Theresa Rice. But his paternal grandparents came from Douglas, County Cork, in Ireland, so allowed the midfielder to represent the country at the youth level before choosing England.
How tall is Declan Rice? What is his height in feet?
Declan Rice measures in at 1.88 metres tall, or standing at a height of 6 ft 2 in feet.
Declan Rice’s girlfriend
Arsenal star Declan Rice has been dating his girlfriend, Lauren Fryer, since the age of 17. The couple met at school and have been childhood sweethearts ever since. Fryer has been next to Rice throughout his professional footballing career and is his constant source of support.
Fryer was born in Chessington, Greater London and gave birth to Rice’s first baby son, Jude, in August 2022. The couple had kept the pregnancy private before Rice unveiled a tattoo of his son’s birth date. Fryer also lives a mostly private life outside of attending Rice’s matches.
Why does Declan Rice wear the number 41?
Declan Rice has worn the number 41 kit shirt since the 2016/17 season while in West Ham’s academy. He has since opted to use it as his permanent kit number for Arsenal as Rice sees superstitious meaning to the number. But Rice generally uses the number four with England.
“It was just a number I was given in the academy by the kitman, Jamo [James Saban],” Rice told The Overlap in February 2022.
“It’s stayed with me since and, to be honest, I had this conversation with my dad, regardless of what happens in my career I might stay with the 41. I think ‘Rice 41’ has a nice ring to it. I’ve grown up playing in it and I’m a bit superstitious about things like that.”