Arsenal got back to winning ways with a 3-0 victory at Brentford on Sunday, but it was teenage midfielder Ethan Nwaneri who grabbed the headlines.
Making his debut as a late substitute, the midfielder became the youngest player in Premier League history at just 15 years and 181 days.
But who else is in the top 10 youngest Premier League players of all time? Good, FourFourTwo has the updated list here.
10. Jack Robinson, Liverpool (16 years and 250 days)
Jack Robinson made just three league appearances for Liverpool, but his first saw him become the club’s youngest Premier League player.
The defender also proved to be Rafael Benitez’s last replacement as Reds manager, replacing Ryan Babel late in a 0-0 draw at Hull on the final day of the 2009/10 season.
These days, Robinson is plying his trade for Sheffield United – starring for the Blades as they recorded their best ever Premier League finish with a ninth-place finish in 2019/20.
9. Reece Oxford, West Ham (16 years and 236 days)
Most of the players on this list made their Premier League debuts as substitutes, but Reece Oxford did so as a starter.
West Ham kicked off their 2015/16 league campaign with a 2-0 away win over Arsenal, with Oxford producing an impressive performance in midfield for Slaven Bilic’s side.
The former England youth international made seven more Premier League appearances for the Hammers, before joining Bundesliga side Augsburg in 2019.
=7. Gary McSheffrey, Coventry (16 years and 198 days)
Coventry through and through, Gary McSheffrey made his senior debut for the Sky Blues in February 1999 – coming off the bench late in a 4-1 thrashing at local rivals Aston Villa.
The striker never scored a Premier League goal for his home club, however, only establishing himself as a first-team regular after they were relegated to the second tier.
He returned to the top flight with Birmingham in 2007/08 but scored just three times in 37 Premier League appearances for the Blues.
=7. Rushian Hepburn-Murphy, Aston Villa (16 years and 198 days)
Rushian Hepburn-Murphy’s first-team breakthrough at Aston Villa coincided with the least memorable period in the club’s recent history – but he will not have forgotten his debut.
The striker came on as a replacement for Christian Benteke on a rare point for Villa in the 2014/15 season – a 4-0 win at Sunderland – despite making just one more Premier League appearance.
Hepburn-Murphy is currently plying his trade for Swindon in League Two, after a stint with Cypriot side Pafos.
6. Jose Baxter, Everton (16 years and 191 days)
Still Everton’s youngest player in the Premier League, Jose Baxter made his Toffees debut as a late substitute for Nuno Valente on matchday one of the 2008/09 season.
The following week he became the Premier League’s youngest ever starter – but the boyhood Liverpool fan made just five more appearances for the Reds’ Merseyside rivals.
Baxter – who returned to Everton in January 2017 after serving a 12-month drugs ban – retired last year aged 29 after a stint with American outfit Memphis 901, admit he hadn’t fulfilled his potential (opens in a new tab).
5. Aaron Lennon, Leeds (16 years and 129 days)
It feels like Aaron Lennon has been around forever – and that’s because he did, really.
Currently a free agent after leaving Burnley, the winger made his Premier League debut around 19 years ago, coming off the bench to replace Mark Viduka as Leeds lost 2-1 to Tottenham at White Hart Lane in August 2003.
Lennon then signed for Spurs in 2006 and made 266 Premier League appearances for them, as well as 21 England caps.
4. Izzy Brown, West Brom (16 years and 117 days)
Izzy Brown made just two Premier League appearances – and his debut saw him become, at the time, the second-youngest player in the competition’s history.
Despite only coming on as a substitute in the 86th minute of West Brom’s 3-2 loss at home to Wigan on the final day of 2012/13, Brown still managed to be booked.
The striker joined Chelsea that summer but only played once for the Blues, who he left in June 2021 after no less than seven loan spells.
3. Matthew Briggs, Fulham (16 years and 98 days)
One of two Fulham players to make this list, Matthew Briggs won the title of youngest Premier League debutant on the final day of 2006/07.
Having made a name for himself in the club’s youth ranks, the defender replaced Moritz Voltz as Lawrie Sanchez’s side lost 3-1 at Middlesbrough.
Now in the non-League borough of Gosport, the Guyana international made a further 12 appearances for the Cottagers – all in the top flight – before being released in 2014.
2. Harvey Elliott, Fulham (16 years and 30 days)
Briggs’ record stood for almost exactly 12 years – until Harvey Elliott came along and broke it on the penultimate weekend of the 2018/19 campaign.
The midfielder had already made his professional League Cup debut earlier this season but his late introduction in Fulham’s 1-0 loss to Wolves could be seen as the start of a truly special Premier League career .
Still aged just 19, Elliott is now a Liverpool first-team regular and an outside bet for inclusion in Gareth Southgate’s England squad for the World Cup.
1. Ethan Nwaneri, Arsenal (15 years and 181 days)
August 18, 2022 is a day Ethan Nwaneri will never forget: as Arsenal returned to the top of the league with a 3-0 win at Brentford, the midfielder became the first 15-year-old to play in Premier League.
With all three points in the bag, Mikel Arteta sent on Nwaneri to replace Fabio Vieira.
In making his Gunners debut, Nwaneri – who is younger than Emirates Stadium – knocked former Arsenal player Jack Wilshere out of that top 10.
