Dr. Rif`at Fawzi, former professor of Shari`ah at Cairo Univ., states the following: “There is nothing wrong, as far as Islam is concerned, that a Muslim man marries a Muslim woman who is older than him especially when the age difference is not that much. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, married women who were older than him. The issue of age difference is much attached to cultures rather than religion. This is not an Islamic criterion in choosing a spouse as the main criterion as mentioned by the Prophet in his hadith is the religious commitment.
With all the above in mind, if a guy finds a girl that really possesses the qualities to look for in a spouse, then they can seek the help of influential family members from both parties to help them get married to her. This will help him marry a woman while her parents and also your parents are agreeing to it. In case, there is strong rejection from the girl’s parents, one can seek the help of a local community imam or a scholar in this regard as this will help them remove whatever obstacles on their way to marriage.