Sean Dyche 'made it clear' Jarrad Branthwaite was not for sale this summer

Sean Dyche said he insisted Jarrad Branthwaite should not be sold even as Everton’s difficult finances dictated the club’s approach in the summer.

The Blues boss said he accepted he would lose some players he wanted to build his squad around but drew a line at the promising centre back.

Reflecting on conversations behind-closed-doors at the club, he said: “I was making it clear he wouldn’t be a player who was available.” Branthwaite has since forced his way into the first team and earned a new contract while emerging as one of the Premier League’s hottest prospects.

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Branthwaite impressed once again in the draw with Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday, preventing another of the league’s top young talents, Evan Ferguson, from threatening as the teenage striker did when he helped his side rip the Blues apart when they last visited Goodison Park in January. The 21-year-old’s form has earned widespread praise and comes after a summer in which he was part of the England Under-21s squad that won the European Championships. That followed a successful season on loan at PSV Eindhoven.

Towards the end of that campaign there were claims PSV would seek to make his move permanent. Asked whether the Dutch club indicated its interest to him, Dyche said: “Not to me. I was making it clear he wouldn’t be a player who was available. I knew there were certain players who had to leave the building, whether I wanted them to leave or not, we had to bring down the wage bill a little bit. So I made it clear - ‘no he’s one I want to be in the building and I see development in