Everton transfer stance emerges as two new European clubs chase Jarrad Branthwaite deal
Jarrad Branthwaite is currently set to stay at Everton despite Villarreal and Nice both chasing loan deals for him, according to Mail Plus.
The giant centre-back, 21, spent last season with PSV Eindhoven and convinced the Eredivisie side with his performances to try for a new deal, with Ruud van Nistelrooy very keen on retaining the youngster before he left the club.
But as with the Dutch it appears his Spanish and French suitors are set to be disappointed too with Everton planning to keep Branthwaite at Goodison Park at the moment.
According to Simon Jones in his Transfer Confidential: “Everton centre back Jarrad Branthwaite is wanted on loan by Villarreal and Nice following his impressive spell at PSV Eindhoven last season but the 21-year-old is expected to stay as it stands.”
Needed
With Yerry Mina and Conor Coady both gone, and Mason Holgate potentially set to follow, it seems like the perfect opportunity for Branthwaite to make a permanent step up to the first team.
Loaning him out doesn’t do Everton much good at this point, and he has the stature of a Sean Dyche player, so with the Toffees boss getting a look at him for the first time this preseason he could even be in line to dislodge Michael Keane for a starting role if he impresses.
Developments so far this summer suggest that should a club come in with a cash offer to sign Branthwaite permanently it might be a different matter altogether.
Ellis Simms looked like a decent prospect for the future, and Ishe Samuels-Smith definitely was, but both have been sold for relatively modest sums.
Dyche needs players who can contribute immediately so that he can steer the Toffees away from a third-straight relegation battle, and it appears to be necessary to sacrifice some elements of the future to build a budget to do that – which is currently being used in the push to land El Bilal Touré this week.
Branthwaite however, appears to be a player who can help right now after proving himself in the Netherlands, so it would be a shame to see him go unless big money is on the table.
Loans to La Liga or Ligue 1 are not going to be of use unless Dyche doesn’t need him and wants him off the wage bill, so snubbing that interest surely makes sense at this stage.
In other Everton news, Alan Myers has shared the chances of success in the head-to-head battle to finally land a striker in the coming days.