CONFIRMED: Jarrad Branthwaite joins PSV Eindhoven on loan

Young Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite has joined Dutch giants PSV Eindhoven on a season-long loan.

The move sees Branthwaite reunited with Marcel Brands, with joined PSV as director of football earlier this year after quitting a similar position with the Toffees last December.

Brands is believed to rate the 20-year-old highly and was instrumental in signing him for Everton from Carlisle in 2020.

The Toffees still rate Branthwaite highly too, but with so much competition for a first team place he is unlikely to secure regular football this season.

James Tarkowski has added to Everton’s defensive options this summer, with Michael Keane, Yerry Mina, Mason Holgate and Ben Godfrey all currently vying for a centre-back spot.

Branthwaite only turned 20 last month so is still the fledgling stages of his career, but knows he needs to be playing week in, week out in order to maximise his development.

A loan move therefore will suit all parties, with Branthwaite left out of the Toffees squad currently touring the USA in order to put the final touches on the move.

It is the second loan spell away from Goodison for the young defender after spending part of the 2020-21 campaign at Championship side Blackburn, though it was eventually cut short by injury.

PSV, however, is a completely different prospect. They are one of the biggest sides in the Netherlands and are managed by former Manchester United striker Ruud van Nistelrooy.

They could also offer Branthwaite the chance to play Champions League football after they finished second in Eredivisie behind Ajax last season to reach the qualifying stages.

Branthwaite has made 13 appearances for Everton, scoring once, in a 1-1 draw with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge last December. That same month he signed a new three-and-a-half year contract until the summer of 2025, with the option of a further year.