Everton sent warning over Jarrad Branthwaite transfer as Virgil van Dijk comparison made
Former Everton player Pat Nevin reckons Jarrad Branthwaite is the most-outstanding prospect in his position in world football and has compared the Blues’ breakthrough star of the season to Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk.
Branthwaite got the better of Van Dijk and company when his goal a fortnight ago put Sean Dyche’s men on their way to the club’s first Goodison Park victory over the Reds for 13-and-a-half years and ruin Jurgen Klopp’s final Merseyside Derby as Dominic Calvert-Lewin went on to seal a 2-0 home success. PSV Eindhoven president Marcel Brands, the man who brought a then 17-year-old Branthwaite to Everton in January 2020 after just nine League Two outings for his local club Carlisle United when he was the Blues’ director of football, last week told the ECHO: “In principle he has everything to become one of the top defenders in the world,” adding: “I’m very happy for him and also for Everton because he will be a very valuable player in the near future.”
However, Nevin, who played 150 games for Everton, scoring 21 goals between 1988-92, is hoping that the 21-year-old, who penned a new contract in October to commit himself to the club until 2027, stays put. The Scot told OLBG: “If I was looking at any young centre-back on the planet just now, I’d look at Jarrad Branthwaite first. Now that’s a big statement, a big call, but honestly, he has grown so quickly.
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“There are so many things to his game that I think people don’t even know yet because he is playing a certain style under Sean Dyche. I would be devastated as a former Everton player
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