Liverpool will reportedly send scouts next week to PSV Eindhoven to watch on-loan Everton talent Jarrad Branthwaite, with AS Roma and Manchester United also interested in signing the centre-back.
According to the Daily Mail, the 20-year-old defender has caught the eye of some of Europe’s biggest clubs, with Liverpool now interested in signing Branthwaite in what could be one of the first cross-city transfers in over a decade since Abel Xavier in 2002.
Lauded as a ‘titanic defender as per the Eindhovens Dagblad, Branthwaite has impressed for PSV this season despite not being a regular for Ruud van Nistelrooy’s side this campaign, with the Daily Mail stating that the Dutch giants had a £15m January bid rejected by Everton for the defender.
And now, Liverpool have joined the race to sign Branthwaite in what would be one of the most surprising deals of 2023, with Everton unlikely to sell one of their star talents to a Premier League rival, let alone their Merseyside enemies.
Indeed, Branthwaite has benefitted greatly from the loan spell with PSV this season, and with Everton yet to confirm they have received financial help from outside investors, there’s a good chance that the former Carlisle wonderkid could be on the move this summer.
However, given the rising tensions between Everton and Liverpool, the Reds could be refused to talk to Branthwaite in any sort of deal to sign the England youth international, which could tempt Jurgen Klopp to look at similar players in the European market.
Liverpool will find it hard to sign Everton talent Branthwaite
As mentioned, few players have made the direct move from Everton to Liverpool and vice-versa, and in the social media age of football, the Reds could find it near-impossible to sign Branthwaite given the discourse between rival clubs nowadays.
Whilst Branthwaite would make sense as a signing on paper given Liverpool’s need for an extra young centre-back, the Everton talent will simply be too hard a player to recruit, and for Klopp, other options in the market will likely be easier to bring to Anfield than the on-loan Toffees star.
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