Everton face battle to keep ‘sensational’ star who is being ‘considered’ by Man Utd

Add as preferred source on Google

Everton centre-back Jarrad Branthwaite is reportedly of interest to Manchester United as they look to overhaul their defence.

In what has been a difficult season for Everton so far, Sean Dyche can ill afford to lose any of his key players in this window.

The Toffees have already been hit with a 10-point deduction after breaching financial fair play rules in November and although they battled out of that, more bad news continues to fall Everton’s way.

After being found to have allegedly breached the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules earlier this week, the club could yet face a third PSR punishment and that isn’t news any supporter would have wanted to hear.

Despite off-the-field matters taking the limelight, Everton have been impressive on the pitch and would be sat comfortably in mid-table if it wasn’t for the points deduction.

During their period of uncertainty, Jarrad Branthwaite has led their charge up the table.

This, of course, has seen him get regularly linked with a move away from Goodison Park.

Man United consider Jarrad Branthwaite

Everybody seems to be keeping an eye on the form of Branthwaite, including Man United, who are looking to overhaul their defence.

According to ESPN’s Rob Dawson, the Englishman is on their list of targets up for consideration in the summer.

United are said to hold an interest in Branthwaite, Bayern Munich’s Mathijs De Ligt and Nice’s Jean-Clair Todibo.

Given his age and qualities, the 21-year-old is a hugely saleable asset and while Everton won’t want to lose him, he seems destined to play at the very top sooner rather than later.

The Toffees may have to offload Branthwaite to secure the financial future of the club, which is far from ideal, but it does highlight the ceiling of the Englishman’s potential.

How good is Jarrad Branthwaite?

For as long as the season goes on, those who watch Branthwaite are running out of superlatives to describe him.

The youngster, who was signed from Carlisle United in 2020, has the world at his feet and the commanding performances he puts in every week have become a staple of his game.

A colossus at the back, as underscored by his 6.4 balls recovered and 4.7 clearances per game, via Sofascore, the Englishman is also supremely gifted with the ball at his feet, drawing comparisons to Manchester City defender John Stones.

With a pass completion of 86% in his own half, Branthwaite is a calming presence defensively and is deserving of the praise he received from former England striker Alan Shearer, who labelled him as “magnificent”.

It is therefore no surprise to see the youngster garnering an impressive list of admirers.

Unfortunately, Everton supporters will have to enjoy him while they can.