Brayden Clarke

Brayden Clarke
Clarke in 2026
Personal information
Full name Brayden Cian Clarke[1]
Date of birth (2007-07-03) 3 July 2007[2]
Place of birth Birmingham, England
Height 6 ft 1 in (1.86 m)[2]
Position Centre-back
Team information
Current team
 Arsenal
Number 38
Youth career
2016–2024 Wolves
2024– Arsenal
International career‡
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2022 Wales U16 6 (0)
2022–2024 Wales U17 19 (0)
2024– Wales U19 7 (0)
‡ National team caps and goals as of 19:03, 2 October 2025 (UTC)

Brayden Cian Clarke (born 3 July 2007) is a footballer who plays as a centre-back for Premier League side Arsenal.[3] He is a Wales under-19 international.

Early career

Clarke was born on 3 July 2007 in Birmingham, West Midlands as his father Nigel Quashie was playing for West Bromwich Albion at the time. In 2010, at the age of three, he moved to Hagley. Clarke started his youth career at local club West Hagley and Stourbridge FC before joining the Wolverhampton Wanderers academy at nine years old.[4]

In December 2022, at the age of 15, he made his debut for the Wolves U21 side.[5]

In March 2024, Clarke joined the academy of fellow Premier League club Arsenal.[6][7][8]

In July 2024, Clarke signed his first professional contract with Arsenal.

In May 2025, he received his first senior team call-up and was named on the bench for Arsenal in a Premier League match at the age of 17.

In July 2026, Clarke made his senior first-team debut for Arsenal in a 4–1 victory over Girona in the 49th Costa Brava Trophy.

International career

Clarke was born in England and is of Welsh and English descent through his mother and English, Scottish and Ghanaian descent through his father.[4] He plays for Wales internationally and he is also eligible to represent England.

At the age of 15, he made his debut for Wales U17s.[9] Clarke featured for Wales at the UEFA European Under-17 Championship in 2023 and 2024.[10][11] He is the only player in Wales' history to play in 2 consecutive Euro finals. He has also played for Wales at the UEFA European Under-19s Championship in 2025.

In 2026, Clarke was selected for the Wales under-19 squad for the UEFA European Under-19 Championship finals. His selection made him the first Wales player to be selected for three UEFA European Championship finals tournaments at youth level. He also captained Wales throughout the tournament.

References

  1. ↑ "2024/25 Updated Premier League squad lists". Premier League. 7 February 2025. Retrieved 25 March 2025.
  2. 1 2 "Brayden Clarke". worldfootball.net. HEIM:SPIEL Medien GmbH & Co. KG. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
  3. ↑ "Brayden Clarke". Soccerway. Retrieved 9 June 2024.
  4. 1 2 "Young Gun: Brayden Clarke". Arsenal F.C. 11 April 2024.
  5. ↑ "15-year-old joins Wolves first team training as rapid rise continues". Birmingham Mail. 2 December 2022.
  6. ↑ "Arsenal confirm signing of Welsh wonderkid Brayden Clarke from Wolves, with starlet set to work his way up from U18s". Goal.com. 16 March 2024.
  7. ↑ "Brayden Clarke: Arsenal confirm signing of 16-year-old wonderkid hours before surprise debut". Evening Standard. 16 March 2024.
  8. ↑ "Arsenal sign teenager Clarke after Wolves exit". The Athletic. 16 March 2024.
  9. ↑ "Wolves youngster Brayden Clarke making history with Wales". Express and Star. 5 April 2023.
  10. ↑ "Wolves and Aston Villa forwards jet off for under-17s European Championship". Shropshire Star. 20 May 2023.
  11. ↑ "Cymru squad announced for 2024 UEFA EURO U17 finals". Football Association of Wales. 26 April 2024.
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