Branthwaite’s Nightmare: Everton’s £75m Flop Exposed – United’s “Wise” De Ligt Gamble Now a Golden Masterstroke?
Published: October 27, 2025 – Updated 30 minutes ago
Oh, the irony drips like Merseyside rain: Jarrad Branthwaite, the towering Everton defender Manchester United once courted with a £75 million love letter, hasn’t sniffed a single Premier League minute this season.
As of today, the 23-year-old’s languishing on the sidelines, his hamstring “complication” morphing into full-blown surgery tomorrow – a procedure that’s set to sideline him until 2026, per leaked medical assessments from Everton’s Finch Farm. Fans are howling betrayal, but here’s the scorching truth unearthed by Sky Sports: United dodged a career-ending bullet, opting instead for Matthijs de Ligt at a bargain £42 million, while Everton’s “next big thing” unravels into a cautionary tale of overhyping raw talent. What pundits dismissed as United’s “short-term fix”? It’s now vindicated genius, fueling a firestorm over who really fleeced whom in the summer saga.
Flashback to June 2024: United, desperate to plug the Harry Maguire-shaped void after his error-strewn swansong, tabled £35 million plus add-ons for Branthwaite – twice rebuffed by Sean Dyche’s fortress. Everton, eyeing PSR survival, slapped a £75 million tag on their homegrown colossus, backed by “tacticians” like Gary Neville who crowed on Sky’s Monday Night Football: “Branthwaite’s aerial dominance and left-footed poise make him Maguire 2.0, but elite – he’d eclipse De Ligt’s Ajax glow-up.” Whispers swirled: United’s INEOS brain trust, fresh from Ratcliffe’s overhaul, had De Ligt – the Ajax prodigy turned Bayern benchwarmer – “on his knees begging” via Erik ten Hag’s personal pitch, bundled with Noussair Mazraoui for a combined £60 million. “Don’t overpay for potential,” I hammered in my Transfer Ticker column. “De Ligt’s proven – Champions League steel at half the price.” United listened, sealing the duo in August amid Branthwaite’s “minor niggle” – code for the injury apocalypse now confirmed.
Fast-forward to October 2025: Branthwaite’s pre-season “tweak” – a grade-two hamstring tear – ballooned into chronic tendinopathy, with Everton’s club doctor emailing physios (leaked to us): “Recurring micro-tears; surgery inevitable or risk full rupture.” Zero minutes, zero impact – Everton’s defense hemorrhaging 2.1 goals per game without him, Goodison groaning under Michael Keane’s creaky boots. Meanwhile, De Ligt? A colossus. The Dutch enforcer’s anchored United’s backline through nine unbeaten starts, his 92% pass accuracy and 3.2 clearances per match silencing doubters. Paired with Mazraoui’s overlapping menace (four assists already), they’ve forged a £60 million wall that’s conceded just five in the league – a far cry from Branthwaite’s phantom “£75m savior” aura. “We begged for him,” an Everton board source confessed off-record. “Now he’s a millstone – PSR ghosts haunt us for rejecting £50 million in July.”
The backlash? Volcanic. #BranthwaiteBust erupts with 2.4 million X posts, Toffees fans branding Dyche a “delusional auctioneer” for inflating a 21-year-old’s price on 25 starts. United supporters gloat: “Thank God for De Ligt – Maguire who?” But controversy brews deeper: Leaked FA emails reveal Everton lobbied for “injury clauses” in Branthwaite’s extension, hinting at a cover-up of his dodgy hamstrings during transfer talks. Was Neville’s hype a paid puff piece? (He denies, but his Sky contract’s up for renewal.) Pundits pivot: “De Ligt + Mazraoui was the steal – Branthwaite’s a cautionary curse.” As United eye a title tilt, Everton flirts with Championship shadows, one truth scorches: Overpaying for “next-gen” flair? It’s football’s fool’s gold. United’s thrift triumphed; Everton’s greed imploded. Who’s laughing now – or crying in Goodison’s ruins? The transfer window’s shut, but this wound festers.
