Alan Stubbs insists Everton made their best transfer move in 10 years this summer
EXCLUSIVE: Alan Stubbs opens up on Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite and why it was so important that the club kept the Egnaldn centre-back this summer
by Chris McKenna · The MirrorAlan Stubbs believes Everton’s best business for a decade was keeping hold of Jarrad Branthwaite.
The Toffees managed to see off two bids from Manchester United in the summer despite the Premier League giants being keen to sign the England defender.
Branthwaite, 22, had a £70m price tag slapped on him and the Blues refused to budge despite the interest from United, who didn’t go above £50m with their offers.
“In terms of Jarrad Branthwaite still being here, it was the best bit of business Everton have done in the last 10 years,” Stubbs told bestbettingsites.com. “I think the fact that he had his operation, United were trying to buy him on the cheap.
“They were probably trying to take advantage of Everton’s financial position, whereas Everton thankfully did a bit of business with other clubs in terms of their academy players and eased those financial concerns. That eased the pressure massively on the club, so they did not need to sell a prized asset.”
Branthwaite has only played once this season for the Toffees. It was their only Premier League win of the campaign so far as they beat Crystal Palace at Goodison Park.
The defender has formed a strong partnership with James Tarkowski over the last 12 months to help solidify Everton’s defence.
Former centre-back Stubbs, who had six years at Everton across two stints, believes Sean Dyche has struck gold with the defender.
“For me, Jarrad Branthwaite is in the current market, a £70m player,” he said. “He’s a rare commodity: he’s a left-sided centre-back, he’s quick, 6’ 3”. His reading of the game is very impressive.”
Branthwaite has already got one England cap to his name and Stubbs doesn’t believe the defender needs to move to a bigger club to make his name.
“The England number one Jordan Pickford is on our team, and he hasn’t had to move to keep his place,” added Stubbs. “So, from that point of view, I don’t think it’s a necessity that Jarrad has to move on to fulfil his international ambitions.
“There’s bits of Jarrad’s game that still need work, but he’s got a huge amount of potential, not just for Everton but for England as well.
“I think he’s one for the future. I wouldn’t be surprised if Branthwaite is in the upcoming England squads because he’s someone that, whether it’s Lee Carseley or a new man, that you would want in that squad as quickly as possible.”
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