Manchester United are believed to be showing an interest in Everton starlet, Jarrad Branthwaite, albeit with it set to take a sizeable offer to be able to prise the young centre-back from his current home this summer.
How much will Jarrad Branthwaite cost?
Following a recent report from the Daily Mail which credited United with an interest in the 21-year-old, Football Insider have now claimed that the Red Devils have even made an enquiry regarding the prospect of a summer swoop for the Carlisle native.
The report suggests that the Red Devils are among a raft of Premier League clubs who are keen on signing the ex-PSV Eindhoven loanee, with ‘doubts’ persisting over Harry Maguire’s future at Old Trafford.
The only notable stumbling block in any deal, however, may be the Toffees’ asking price, with the piece revealing that the Goodison Park outfit are set to demand a fee of around £25m, despite having valued the youngster at just £6m earlier in the window.
How good is Jarrad Branthwaite?
That price tag may appear rather steep for a player who has not even been able to cement a prominent role with the Merseysiders to date – having made just 13 first-team appearances since signing from his hometown club, Carlisle United in 2020 – although the towering, 6 foot 5 colossus showed on loan in the Eredivisie just what a talent he is.
Operating in a league that former Ajax boss, Erik ten Hag is evidently familiar with, Branthwaite made 27 appearances under the watchful eye of United legend, Ruud van Nistelrooy, having been hailed as “complete” by the ex-PSV boss following that breakthrough campaign.
The England youth international – who featured once for the Young Lions at the U21 European Championship earlier this year – could represent something of an upgrade on the aforementioned Maguire, with the 30-year-old seemingly surplus to requirements at the Theatre of Dreams.
After being restricted to just eight Premier League starts last season, the former Leicester City man has since been stripped of the captaincy by Ten Hag as a further sign of his woes, having slipped down the pecking order to become arguably the fourth or fifth-choice centre-back option – behind even usual full-back, Luke Shaw.
One notable benefit that Branthwaite would have over his compatriot is the fact that he can provide a natural option as a backup to Lisandro Martinez in a left centre-back berth, with the United boss having previously spoken of his preference for having a left-footer in that role.
A player with an array of talents, it may not even be too long before the Everton ace is challenging Maguire at international level, with former Carlisle boss Steven Pressley having stated in the past:
“The truth is, I think he has got everything. He can pass the ball almost equally as good with both feet. He’s a terrific footballer.
“And If he continues to develop, then, without doubt, he can be an England player.”
The younger man could perhaps offer greater composure when playing out from the back as he had an average pass accuracy rate of 87% last term, with that ahead of what Maguire achieved from his 16 league outings (85%).
Equally, it is Branthwaite who could represent a greater ball-winning asset having averaged 2.3 tackles and interceptions per game last season, while the current United man averaged just 1.3 in that regard.
While still relatively young and raw, that would suggest that the one-time Blackburn Rovers loanee can be something of an upgrade on Maguire in Ten Hag’s defensive ranks next season, if the Red Devils can look past that reported £25m asking price.
