Everton reject £35m bid from Manchester United for Jarrad Branthwaite
Everton have rejected Manchester United FC’s opening bid for their centre-back Jarrad Branthwaite, as reported by BBC Sport. The bid, believed to be in the region of £35 million, falls well short of the Toffees £80m valuation of their star defender.
The 21-year-old grew leaps and bounds over the course of the 2023/24 season, playing a key role in ensuring Sean Dyche’s side remained comfortably midtable in the Premier League despite suffering multiple points deduction.
United have been monitoring the England international for a while and have chosen him to be the successor for the outgoing Raphaël Varane.
If they manage to fail in their pursuit Branthwaite, United are likely to go after Bayern Munich’s Matthijs de Ligt, who is expected to be put on the market by the Bavarian giants for a cut-price fee. Branthwaite currently has a £35k-per-week contract with Everton, which is set to run until June 2027.
United evidently ready to play the long game
As they have demonstrated by their pursuit of Dan Ashworth for the role of sporting director, United are willing to be patient and play hard ball in their pursuit of their targets under the new INEOS sporting ownership.
This is a good thing. While £35 million is admittedly too low for Branthwaite, Everton’s £80m ask is also too high, but with their initial bid United are sending out the message that they do not intend to be wasteful with their money, as they have been in the past.
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The Toffees, owing to their Profit and Sustainability issues, are likely to come down from their valuation and agree to a deal between £50 million and £60 million.
