Amid the uncertainty surrounding Everton, there is at least certainty that in Jarrad Branthwaite they possess one of the brightest young defenders around.
If they had held on to three points here it would have been largely thanks to the 21-year-old, who scored a beauty and defended with maturity beyond his years, later revealing he was more pleased by his defensive efforts than his goal.
‘I probably got even more joy from the tackle on Simon Adingra because he is in on goal and if he gets the ball across, they score from it. My main job is to stop goals,’ he said. Up until the age of 15 Branthwaite played as a midfielder but in recent years he has spoken about how the centre half role allows him more time on the ball and his comfort in possession was clear to see.
But among various attributes, it is his positioning that stands out. He was regularly on hand in a solid defensive partnership with James Tarkowski to deny Brighton, until Lewis Dunk’s added-time equaliser.
The last few weeks have seen Branthwaite score a late equaliser but also face a lesson at the hands of Erling Haaland.
