Arsenal transfer news: Nathaniel Brown asking price emerges as 'top offers' expected for Man City-linked defender

Arsenal have reportedly discovered how much it will take to lure 22-year-old Nathaniel Brown away from Eintracht Frankfurt in 2026.

Despite the abundance of left-sided defenders in their squad, the Gunners are reported to have taken an interest in the Bundesliga left-back, who has also attracted glances from Manchester City.

A product of the Nuremberg youth system, Brown joined Frankfurt for a mere £2.6m in January 2024 and has now made 41 appearances for Die Adler in all tournaments, scoring four goals and setting up nine more.

The 2024-25 campaign was a breakout year for the wide man, who hit double figures in Bundesliga goal contributions - three strikes and seven helpers - from a left wing-back role in Frankfurt's system.

Brown's efforts proved critical in securing Champions League football for the 2021-22 Europa League winners, and he has already managed one goal and two assists from his first eight games in 2025-26, where he has transitioned to an out-and-out left-back.

The 22-year-old's domestic exploits were also recognised by Germany head coach Julian Nagelsmann, who handed Brown his senior international debut last Friday in Die Mannschaft's 4-0 World Cup 2026 Qualifying win over Luxembourg.

Frankfurt braced for 'top offers' for Arsenal-linked Nathaniel Brown

Frankfurt have no need to sell Brown on the cheap, though, as the defender is already under contract at the Deutsche Bank Park until 2030, having only signed an extension in February.

Nevertheless, journalist Florian Plettenberg claims that the German side are anticipating 'top offers' for the 22-year-old next year, when interested parties will have to pay €60m (£52.2m) to prise him away from the Bundesliga.

Plettenberg adds that Brown's long-running contract does not contain a release clause, leaving clubs at Frankfurt's mercy in negotiations, and whether the player is open to leaving the Deutsche Bank Park so soon is another matter entirely.

A potential £52.2m exit for Brown would make him Frankfurt's top defensive exit ever and fifth most-expensive sale of all time, behind attackers Hugo Ekitike, Randal Kolo Muani, Luka Jovic and Omar Marmoush.

Do Arsenal, Man City really need Nathaniel Brown?

At one stage last season, Arsenal had no fewer than six players who could have functioned as a left-back - Jurrien Timber, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Riccardo Calafiori, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Myles Lewis-Skelly and Kieran Tierney.

Only three of those remain at the Emirates - excluding Nottingham Forest loanee Zinchenko, who is likely to leave on a free next year - and Timber is now Mikel Arteta's first-choice right-back, leaving Lewis-Skelly and Calafiori to battle for the left flank.

With Calafiori the undisputed top pick on that side, and Lewis-Skelly recently signing a new long-term deal, Arsenal spending over £50m on another left-back would be nonsensical, unless there are genuine concerns about the latter's future.

Meanwhile, Man City have just tied the promising Nico O'Reilly down to his own renewal, and a deal for Brown could potentially hamper the Englishman's development while he battles Rayan Ait-Nouri for left-back minutes.