According to Daily Mail, Manchester United are favourites alongside Tottenham Hotspur to sign Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite during the summer transfer window.
The 21-year-old is currently one of the best young central defenders in the country and he has caught the eye of elite Premier League teams with his consistent performances for the Toffees this campaign.
It won’t be long before he pursues a bigger challenge away from Goodison Park and Daily Mail claim that Man United and Spurs are leading the race to sign him at the end of the campaign.
The likes of Arsenal and Chelsea have also been credited with an interest and are monitoring him, but United and Spurs are pushing the most for his signature in the next transfer window.
Big potential
Branthwaite was a fringe player in his breakthrough campaign at Everton, but he managed to transform his fortunes during a successful loan spell with PSV Eindhoven last season.
The England Under-21 international has now become a regular centre-back for the Toffees alongside James Tarkowski. He was recently brilliant against Manchester City, barring one error.
The youngster would be a perfect signing for both United and Spurs. He is strong when it comes to tackles, winning aerial and ground duels and also has the pace to make ball recoveries.
His distribution is not up to scratch, but it should improve with age and experience. Branthwaite plays as a left centre-back as he is left-footed but he can also operate from the right.
One thing is for sure that Everton will demand a premium price if they avoid relegation from the Premier League. They are currently only 1 point adrift of safety despite a 10-point deduction for breaching Profit and Sustainability rules.
As per TeamTalk, the Merseyside club could look for at least £75 million to part ways with the highly-rated central defender. They have set the benchmark after Wesley Fofana joined Chelsea from Leicester City for that price at the age of 21.
