Everton main man now really WANTS to join Champions League club 😦 ❌

Everton main man now really WANTS to join Champions League club 😦 ❌

Jarrad Branthwaite is ‘up’ for joining Newcastle United.

That’s according to Football Transfers journalist Steve Kay, who has reported that the defender would like to move closer to his family.

Born in Carlisle, Jarrad Branthwaite spent five years with his hometown club before joining Everton for £1 million in 2020.

The 21-year-old struggled for game time at Goodison Park before he enjoyed a spectacular loan spell with PSV, which saw him linked with a move to Manchester United and Man City.

However, Branthwaite remained at Everton and has been brilliant in the early stages of the current campaign, earning himself a new four-year contract last month that provided him with a significant wage increase.

While the Toffees looked to have batted off any major interest in Branthwaite, it now doesn’t look like his fresh terms will prevent rivals from pursuing his signature.

Speaking to NUFC Blog, Kay claimed that Newcastle will push for Branthwaite in January, while the centre-back could be open to the switch as he looks to move closer to Carlisle.

Kay said: “I’ve been told Eddie Howe is looking for a long-term replacement for Fabian Schar, who is coming up to 32 soon, and Jarrad Branthwaite is the guy at the top of his list.

MORE EVERTON STORIES

“Since I’ve been told that news, I’ve been speaking to a few other people and no one is surprised one bit. He fits all the criteria of an Eddie Howe signing.

“If you go back to other windows, he usually goes for English players and likes to build an English core. Last summer he looked at James Maddison, Kalvin Phillips, Conor Gallagher and Mason Mount, with Nick Pope, Kieran Trippier, Dan Burn and Anthony Gordon signed in previous windows.

“Branthwaite just fits and I’m told he’d be up for the move. He’s from Carlisle where a lot of his family are still based, which is just an hour from Newcastle.

“He’s up for the move and Howe would like it to happen in January, as he believes a flurry of top clubs will be looking to sign him next summer. January is a hard time to get players, but he’s the want they want and ticks so many boxes for the club.

“Howe also feels he’d compliment Newcastle’s current options. He’d add pace to his back line and would also learn from experienced players like Trippier, Schar and Burn.”

Everton have heavily relied on Jarrad Branthwaite since he came into the team, with Sean Dyche’s side conceding 1.1 goals per game compared to the 1.5 goals PG they conceded last season, while he has also contributed to three clean sheets in all competitions.

As well as an impressive turnaround in form for Vitaliy Mykolenko – who is Everton’s highest rated player according to WhoScored – Branthwaite has been key to the Toffees’ form and would be a significant loss if they were to lose him.

For him to put pen to paper on a new contract only last month would make it a huge surprise to see him leave, while it seems very unlikely that Everton would allow such a departure so soon.

Everton need to keep hold of Branthwaite if they are to continue moving up the table, and I doubt the ‘superb’ youngster is desperate enough to leave in January. Have a comfortable second half of the campaign and hopefully Sean Dyche can convince him that Goodison Park is the best place for him.