Reporter drops worrying Jarrad Branthwaite transfer twist from Everton

Reporter Pete O’Rourke has dropped a worrying update regarding the future of Everton centre-back Jarrad Branthwaite, ahead of a potentially major summer saga.

Everton incomings & outgoings

The Merseysiders will be hoping to get to the end of the season as unscathed as possible, retaining their Premier League status amid a number of point deductions.

As long as Everton avoid relegation to the Championship, they should still be able to entice good players to the club, and VfL Wolfsburg centre-back Maxence Lacroix has been linked with a move at the end of the current campaign.

Juventus youngster Samuel Iling-Junior, who has been hailed as an “assist machine”, has also been backed to join the Blues in the near future, with the young Englishman struggling to nail down a regular spot at his current club. He has scored seven times for England at youth team level, representing six different age groups including the Under-21s.

There are also plenty of players who could leave Goodison Park this summer, with Amadou Onana arguably the player who has been linked with a move away most often. The Belgian midfielder is thought to be wanted by a host of big clubs, including Premier League pair Arsenal and Newcastle United, along with La Liga giants Barcelona.

Branthwaite is also a target for some huge teams, from Manchester City to Manchester United, with the centre-back possibly feeling that now is the right time to enjoy a new challenge at a club challenging for major honours. He has been hailed as “magnificent” by Alan Shearer and “very brave” by Ian Wright.

It remains to be seen if Jordan Pickford will still be an Everton player when the 2024/25 season gets underway, too, but Roma goalkeeper Mile Svilar has been lined up as a positive replacement for him, should he move on.

Everton suffer brutal Jarrad Branthwaite update

According to Football Insider‘s O’Rourke, Everton could now lose Branthwaite for a cut-price amount in the summer, having wanted £70m for him originally. It is described as an “unexpected and demoralising twist”, as the club may be forced to cash in for a lower sum in order to raise funds before the next financial accounts deadline on June 30.

Losing the 21-year-old in the summer is bad enough, considering what a fantastic young player he is, but having to let him go for less than the desired amount would be an extra blow, especially at a time when the Blues are having financial issues already.

In truth, it almost makes the most sense for Everton to cash in on Branthwaite, using the funds to bring in a number of strong signings instead rather than one outright replacement. The same applies to Onana, but it should only be for massive figures that both balance the books and allow for reinvestment into the team.

The hope is that the situation surrounding the Englishman and his price tag changes, but it would be typical of the Blues’ struggles at the moment to have to accept losing a prized asset on the cheap.