Former Everton captain Alan Stubbs was full of praise for Jarrad Branthwaite after his performances so far this season when asked about key players at Goodison Park live on talkSPORT.
Stubbs insisted Branthwaite’s performances have been the “biggest plus” for Everton this season with James Tarkowski alongside him to lend his experience and know-how.
The former captain also caveated his statement with the warning that he didn’t want to give too high praise because people are already looking at the 21-year-old.
Speaking live on talkSPORT [19 December, 08:52], Stubbs gushed: “I think the biggest plus, and I don’t really want to give him too much praise because there’s already a lot of people looking at him, is Jarrad Branthwaite has been absolutely outstanding.
“He has really been the jewel this season. His performances have been nothing short of fantastic, for such a young lad coming into the team.
“Tarkowski deserves a lot of credit as well because he’s been that experienced one next to him, helping him along.”
The star man this season
Despite a difficult start to the season, one man whose performances refused to go unnoticed was Branthwaite. Now with Everton flying and four straight Premier League wins, those plaudits are only growing louder as his impact on the side has become clear.
The defensive partnership between Branthwaite and Tarkowski has been formidable and provided a base for Sean Dyche’s team to thrive with their relentless defensive contributions constantly making life difficult for the opposition forwards.
Stubbs is right, though. Such impressive performances have drawn the attention of some of the top clubs in the country including Manchester United [Manchester Evening News, 24 November], and the hype around his name will do Everton no favours in that respect.
With clubs circling and his performances continuing to grab the attention, Everton may struggle to hand on to Branthwaite for much longer, so the praise and plaudits will need to be sent his way during his time at Goodison Park.
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