Jarrad Branthwaite, Everton’s key outfield player

Jarrad Branthwaite was speaking to the media after Everton’s goalless draw at Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday when he was stopped by Xavi Simons, a team-mate at PSV during his 2022-23 loan season in the Netherlands. After a brief embrace, the Dutchman told Branthwaite he wanted his jersey, and would pick it up later.

It is unlikely to be the last time this season an opponent seeks out the giant Everton centre-back following a game. Branthwaite is going places — provided he can buck the trend from last season and stay fit.

The match had largely been a low-quality affair between one side, in Spurs, still yet to score in the Premier League this season in their four outings and another, in Everton, who continue to have concerted peaks and troughs in games. There was the odd burst of acceleration or trickery from wingers Savio and Tyrique George, but otherwise the afternoon in north London was defined by clunky forward play and resolute defending.

In front of the watching Thomas Tuchel, who names an England squad on Friday for Nations League meetings with world champions Spain, the Czech Republic (twice) and Croatia in an unusual three-week international window, Branthwaite was imperious. He made four blocks, the best of which repelled Mateus Fernandes’ goal-bound effort in the first half, and four clearances — the most of any Everton player.

Left-back colleague Vitalii Mykolenko scooped the Premier League’s official Player of the Match award, but Branthwaite picked up more than 60 per cent of the vote in Everton’s poll of their fans, more than double that of the Ukrainian, who came second. “He’s always at the back and will tackle for me if I lose my winger — thanks so much for all your help,” Mykolenko told Branthwaite with a grin in a joint post-match interview for Sky Sports, the game’s UK broadcaster.

When he is fit, the 24-year-old, 6ft 5in (195cm) Cumbrian is a difference-maker for Everton, someone who makes those around him look better and has qualities the side — particularly in defence — otherwise lacks. He adds reassurance, amplifying positives and masking deficiencies.

Since the start of the 2024-25 season, Everton average 1.36 points per game (the equivalent of around 51 points across a whole season) and concede just over one goal a match when he starts, versus just over 1.2 points (46 points season-wide) and 1.37 goals against when he does not.

“Jaz is an amazing partner,” James Tarkowski, Everton’s captain and his fellow central defender, told Sky Sports afterwards. “Strong as an ox, rapid, brilliant on the ball, two-footed, communicates really well.

“Last year was difficult for him as he didn’t play many games and missed a lot of football, but he’s come back fit and flying and you can see the quality he’s got.”

After repeated hamstring setbacks last season, the sense heading into the summer was that something needed to change if Branthwaite, seen by many internally as the club’s key outfield player, was to remain fit. He and Everton explored a number of options before sending him to the renowned Myos Sports and Health Clinic in Munich, Germany, used by former Goodison Park team-mate Dominic Calvert-Lewin when the now Leeds United striker looked to overcome his own injury issues.

It has been a long, challenging road back to this point.

“I was in most of the summer, working to be back fit for pre-season,” Branthwaite said on Saturday. “My minutes were managed a lot to have me in the best possible position for the start of the season.

“When you have injuries, you always go looking for something. We came to a decision as a club to look outside of the club and go and get help. I was over in Germany for four to five weeks, working over there alongside the club, just looking at different ways to look at things.

“When you’re out for such a long time and keep getting repeated injuries, it is mentally tough, and you’ve got to work hard every day to get back to being able to get out on the pitch. I’m a lot better at the mental side of things now, and hopefully that can help me.”

Branthwaite’s main aim now is “just to stay fit” and play as many games as possible. There have been times already this season, including at Spurs, when he has been down on the ground or moving gingerly, causing concern for the Everton bench.

As Branthwaite says, he has had his minutes carefully controlled. Manager David Moyes took him out of the side for the Carabao Cup second-round win away at Preston North End last month, but he has now played four league games on the spin, helping Everton remain unbeaten in their fledgling top-flight campaign.

Branthwaite (right) and Mykolenko have formed a strong bond on the left side of Everton’s defence (Glyn Kirk/AFP via Getty Images)

Building on that, and adding to his solitary England cap (28 minutes off the bench against Bosnia and Herzegovina in June 2024), are the next goals.

“The manager is always saying to me, ‘You need to be ready for the midweek game’,” he said. “I’m always saying to him, ‘I know, I know’, but I think he knows as well that the fact that I was out for such a long time, there’s no point rushing things. We’ll see what happens midweek (Everton host Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Carabao Cup’s third round on Wednesday). I imagine I’ll be involved.

“I said last season, before all the injuries, it (England) was something I was looking to be involved in. It’s the same again this season, so hopefully I can be involved in the next camp.”

Competition for a place in Tuchel’s squad is fierce, but Branthwaite appears to be hitting form at the right time. And there is a sense that he still has more to give.

“Jarrad was excellent, as was Myko (Mykolenko),” Moyes said. “They were both very good and had to be.

“England have got some brilliant centre-halves. We’re talking about (Marc) Guehi, (Levi) Colwill and (Ezri) Konsa. But Jarrad’s a really good player. He’s still finding his way after his injury, and he’s got far more to come.”