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Defender Jarrad Branthwaite enjoyed a hugely promising maiden season at Everton having joined the Blues from boyhood club Carlisle United in January 2020.
Branthwaite originally linked up with the Toffees' Under-23 side but soon started training with the Club's Men's Senior Team.
He made his senior Everton debut as a second-half substitute against Wolverhampton Wanderers in July 2020, Branthwaite's first start coming eight days later at Sheffield United where the centre-back was magnificent in a 1-0 win.
The 2022/23 season saw Branthwaite make a loan move to Dutch giants PSV, where he hugely impressed during a valuable experience for his career.
Branthwaite, just 17 when he joined Everton, played 14 first-team matches for Carlisle before moving to Goodison Park.
He originally committed to a two-and-a-half-year Everton deal and penned a one-year extension to that contract in summer 2020.
Cumbrian Branthwaite joined Blackburn Rovers for the rest of the season in January 2021 and started 10 Championship matches before sustaining an ankle injury that prematurely curtailed his Ewood Park stay.
The defender was back at Everton for the 2021/22 campaign and, just days after signing another new contract in December until the end of June 2025 – with the option for a further year – Branthwaite scored his first goal for the Club, netting the equaliser in a 1-1 draw at Chelsea.
He figured in another five Premier League games before the end of the season, including two of the final three – albeit a red card prematurely ended Branthwaite's involvement in a Goodison clash with Brentford – and played eight matches in all competitions across the campaign. The player added four appearances for the Club's Under-23 team and featured twice for England's Under-20 side following a first cap at the age-group level in September 2021.
During the 2022/23 season, Branthwaite was playing in the Netherlands after making a season-long loan move to PSV.
The young centre-back enjoyed a successful spell at the club, making 37 appearances, which included 27 in the Eredivisie, as well as three in the UEFA Europa League, and two in UEFA Champions League qualifiers.
Across the campaign, Branthwaite also scored four goals in a season that saw PSV lift the KNVB Cup after defeating Ajax in the final.
A strong season was rewarded with selection for the England squad for the 2023 Under-21 European Championships, which Lee Carsley's young Lions went on to win in Georgia and Romania, defeating Spain 1-0 in the final.
On his return to Everton, Branthwaite soon forced his way into Sean Dyche's starting XI, becoming a regular at centre-back and producing a string of impressive displays.
That progress was rewarded at the start of October 2023 with a new four-year contract.
Contracted until: June 2027
