Everton: £1m deal now ‘one of best bits of business ever done’ at Goodison Park

Highlights

• Everton’s history of overspending on players is a major factor in their financial struggles and lack of success in recent years.
• Jarrad Branthwaite, signed for just £1m, has the potential to become one of Everton’s best financial investments and could fetch a significant fee in the future.
• Given Everton’s financial situation, it wouldn’t be surprising if they consider selling Branthwaite to raise funds, and bigger clubs could take advantage of his talent at a bargain price.

Everton have famously spent a lot of cash on players who have failed at Goodison Park, but journalist Dean Jones has discussed with GIVEMESPORT one bit of business that could make them ‘an awful lot of money’.

The North West club’s terrible spending has put them in a position where they’ve been involved in back-to-back relegation battles.

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Evertonians were excited to see investment from an Iranian billionaire, Farhad Moshiri, when he acquired a stake in the club back in 2016. However, since then, the Toffees have achieved very little and are possibly in the worst position they’ve been in since the Premier League began. The Merseyside club were close to relegation over the last two seasons, and it’s been a difficult start to this campaign, too. Everton are yet to win a game in England’s top flight, sitting on one point from a possible 15.

A major issue for Everton has been buying players for significant fees and recouping very little when they depart from Goodison Park.

Read More: Ranking Everton’s Most Expensive Transfers Of All Time (From Best To Worst)The list of players who Everton have signed for a minimal fee and offloaded for a major profit is fairly small. The likes of John Stones spring to mind as rare, smart bits of business from the club. The Toffees signed Stones for a fee of £3m from Barnsley back in 2013, before selling him to Manchester City for around £47.5m. To become more of a sustainable club without major financial issues, Everton need to be looking to buy low and sell high, but their strategy has appeared to be the other way round since Moshiri took over.

However, things could be about to change at Goodison Park, with Everton releasing a statement earlier this month stating that 777 Partners have signed an agreement with Moshiri to acquire his 94.1% stake in the club. Hopefully, for Evertonians, this will be the start of positive change.

Stones isn’t the only central defender that Everton have acquired for a minimal fee from the lower divisions, and journalist Jones has now discussed a smart signing in Jarrad Branthwaite.

He can go as far in the game as he wants – Dean Jones

Branthwaite signed for the Toffees for a fee of just £1m from Carlisle back in 2020, as per MailOnline. At the time, Branthwaite was just 17 years old and had already made 11 senior appearances for the then-League Two side in the season before moving to Goodison Park.

Jones has suggested that signing Branthwaite is one of the best bits of business Everton have ever done, and they could sell him for an awful lot of money in the future. The journalist adds that the young defender can go as far in the game as he wants, whether that be with the Toffees or elsewhere. Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, Jones said…

“Yeah, look, he’s learned a lot over the last year and you can see and hear from him that he’s keen to now show that. This is a player that, to be honest, can go as far in the game as he wants. If he keeps this mentality that he’s been shown in terms of a willingness to learn and progress, then he’s certainly going to prove to be one of the best bits of business Everton have ever done financially. I mean, he will either be a key player for years to come, or they’re in line to make an awful lot of money on him.”

Will Everton look to sell Branthwaite?

Everton have made an operating loss for five years in a row – over £400m in total. As a result, they may need to offload some of their valuable assets in the near future. Branthwaite could be considered one of those assets due to his vast potential and ability, and it’s understood that PSV Eindhoven saw a £15m bid rejected for the defender in January. The former PSV loanee has enjoyed an impressive season so far with the Toffees, despite Sean Dyche opting to utilise Michael Keane in the opening few games.

Considering his performances so far this campaign, it certainly wouldn’t be a surprise if a bigger club comes in for Branthwaite in January or next summer. Champions League clubs could look to take advantage of Everton’s precarious financial situation and try to secure themselves a bargain.