Everton handed new Jarrad Branthwaite injury concern after England squad exit

Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite has a new fitness worry in what has been an injury-hit season with the centre-back having withdrawn from the England squad. Sky Sports have confirmed he will not travel with the Three Lions for their UEFA Nations League clash in Greece on Thursday.

It comes after the 22-year-old picked up a slight knock against West Ham United on Saturday. He will now return to Finch Farm to undergo assessment.

Branthwaite was Everton’s breakthrough star of last season and was the subject of two rejected bids from Manchester United over the summer of £35million plus add ons in June and then £45million plus add ons in July. Through the transfer window, the Blues insisted they would not be bullied into selling Branthwaite on the cheap and were actively planning on having him with them for 2024/25 unless a mega offer came in.

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Given the £80million fee that Manchester United paid for Harry Maguire in 2019, the £75million Chelsea paid for Wesley Fofana in 2022 and the £77million Manchester City paid for Josko Gvardiol in 2023, Goodison Park chiefs consider Branthwaite to be in the same bracket, especially given the premium for both left-footed defenders and homegrown talent.

However, after missing the start of this term with what manager Sean Dyche originally described as “a minor groin issue,” last Saturday’s goalless draw at the London Stadium was just a second full game this campaign for Branthwaite, having previously made a triumphant return in the 2-1 comeback win at home to Crystal Palace on September 28.

When explaining the cautious approach with the former Carlisle United youngster, ahead of the trip to the Hammers, Everton manager Dyche said in his pre-match press conference: “You can’t explain every single detail about every single injury, but some injuries are a lot more delicate than others, they have to be really careful. If that approach goes too far, in a split second you can affect someone for three or four weeks.

“Unfortunately, we’ve had a few of those, where they’ve been coming back from semi-serious injuries – not career threatening but semi-serious, like Jarrad’s one was. It starts as a very simple situation with a minor operation and then it leads to a secondary phase and then a third phase of that injury, then he gets fit and then he gets re-injured.

“That’s the Jarrad story. There’s no lack of thirst to get these players fit, I can assure you, because that’s what helps us.

“You’ve got to get them fit to actually play. If you put them out there too early, I thought it was a bit early for Jarrad, but the consensus was ‘no, I think he’s right to go and play,’ and then two days later he got injured again.

“So, I’m not saying I’m right, but I just thought it was a bit too quick. So, we had to be careful, got him back again, because if not, you go through that period again where they play a few, get injured, play a few, get injured, we’re trying to push that away because we’ve had so many injuries.”