According to several reports, Jarrad Branthwaite is close to joining Manchester United. Yesterday evening, news started filtering through on social media that the 21-year-old centre half’s representatives had agreed personal terms with United.
Jarrad Branthwaite made a name for himself last season after his performances for Everton. The Cumbrian-born centre-back won Everton’s Young Player of the Season and Players Player of the Season in his first full campaign with the Toffees. Jarrad’s performances earned him his first senior England call-up, and he made his debut for the National team when coming off the bench in a 3-0 win over Bosnia at the beginning of June.
Despite his performances during Everton’s 23/24 season, he was not selected to go to Germany for the Euro 2024 tournament. That was a decision that a lot of fans questioned Southgate over.
Rumours have it that Everton is holding out for £70 million to see Branthwaite follow in the footsteps of the likes of Rooney, Fellaini and Lukaku and travel down the East Lancs to join arguably the biggest football club in the world. It is understandable why they would be, too. It’s no surprise to anyone that Everton has financial issues. Amongst the fan base, it’s common knowledge that Everton needs to sell some players before the deadline of June 30th.
What Everton needs to decide on is this. Does selling Branthwaite for less than what they value him at to ensure they don’t get a points deduction before the season starts but then face difficulty, replacing a player of that quality with their tight financial restrictions outweigh keeping hold of Branthwaite and taking the points deduction but have the belief that with a player of his capability and quality, recoup those points along the season.
The Numbers Behind the Player
Last season, Jarrad Branthwaite was integral to the 4th best defence in the Premier League. Only champions Man City, runners-up Arsenal and 3rd place Liverpool conceded fewer goals than Everton.
During the 2022/2023 season, Jarrad Branthwaite made the 6th most clearances in the league and the 9th most across Europe’s Big 5 Leagues. The soon-to-be 22-year-old also made the 7th most interceptions in the Premier League. Jarrad had a successful tackle percentage of just under 58%.
Embed from Getty ImagesManchester United have already confirmed that Raphael Varane will leave the club this summer. Eric ten Hag is supposedly signing a new deal, too. So, this could start a restructure for the Red Devils.
Excluding Varane, United’s centre-halves are Harry Maguire, Lissandro Martinez, Victor Lindelof, and Jonny Evans. Jonny Evans and Harry Maguire started the most games for Manchester United last season: Maguire started eighteen games, and Evans started 15. They also played the most minutes out of the four of them. Harry Maguire, who was left out of England’s Euro Squad, is 30, and Jonny Evans is 35.
Maguire, Martinez, Lindelof, and Evans combined to win forty-nine tackles in the league, only thirteen more than Jarrad himself. The four-man United defenders also won 126 aerial duels, only thirty-two more than Branthwaite.
Across Europe’s top 5 big leagues, only 8 players blocked more shots than Branthwaite. Only 3 players aged 22 and under won more aerial duels than him.
Will United Meet Everton’s price demand?
The price Everton set for Branthwaite has raised a few eyebrows. The only people who haven’t questioned it are Evertonians. Why? because they know how important he is and how good he will go on to be. Some fans have compared Brathwaite to John Stones.
There are similarities between the two defenders. Both are calm on the ball, comfortable playing out from the back, and read the game brilliantly.
Embed from Getty ImagesBranthwaite would unquestionably improve Manchester United. A young English centre-half who has had the best year of his career to come seems to be a good business for Man United.
For Everton, it is a sour pill to swallow. On the one hand, the club realises they need to cash in on a player and the way PSR works, and it makes more sense to sell Branthwait for £70 million rather than a player like Onana for the same. On the other hand, they will want to keep one of their young talents. Too many times have the Toffees discovered a potential gem and had to sacrifice the player to help finance the club. It’s an all too familiar story for some Evertonians.
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