Everton defender Michael Keane has started the season in fine form, but he could easily have been playing away from Merseyside.
Jarrad Branthwaite’s injury before the season even started left Everton fans fearing the worst.
Branthwaite brings so much quality to Everton’s back line, and his pace offered a perfect fit next to James Tarkowski.
Michael Keane stepped up in Branthwaite’s absence and has enjoyed a fine start to the campaign, after almost leaving the club for free.
Michael Keane celebrates scoring for Everton v West Ham United
Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images
Michael Keane explains how David Moyes sparked Everton stay
Keane joined Everton from Burnley in 2017 and has racked up more than 200 appearances for the Toffees.
Keane looked set to leave Everton on a free transfer as his contract came to an end over the summer.
Early in July, Everton confirmed that Keane had signed a new one-year deal, and that looks to have been a great decision.
Keane has impressed Everton fans this season and scored against West Ham United on Monday night.
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The defender is in strong form right now, and he has told Everton’s official website that he gave serious thought to leaving.
David Moyes’ personal intervention proved to be the real reason why Keane stayed put, as he called Keane to get a deal done.
Keane had just 48 hours to make a decision as Moyes urgently attempted to keep the defender, and he decided to continue in the Premier League.
“Obviously, my contract had ran down and I’d not played a lot of football, so the consideration of playing football somewhere else was definitely there, and I did have options,” said Keane.
“And eventually, the manager got in touch and just said he wanted to get something sorted. And when that happened, I had to make a decision within 24 to 48 hours, really. I just thought about it and thought, ‘I’ve been here for eight years, and I feel like I’ve still got a lot to give in the Premier League.
“I still know I can help this team when needed. With going into the new stadium and potentially quite a big overhaul of players, I thought it was a really exciting time to be a part of the Club. After being here for a long time and having a few tougher years, I thought it would be nice to, hopefully, be a part of a more positive season and show I can still play at a high level in the Premier League.
“Thankfully, I’ve managed to do that, and I think it’s turned out well for everyone so far,” he added.
Michael Keane could hand David Moyes a very tricky decision
Keane’s form may just leave Moyes with quite the quandary in defence once Branthwaite returns.
Branthwaite and Tarkowski have enjoyed a strong partnership over the years at Everton, something Moyes may trust moving forward.
However, Keane has been so impressive in the early weeks of this season that he is staking a claim to start in place of Tarkowski.
Tarkowski serves as captain when Seamus Coleman isn’t in action, so Moyes may be reluctant to take him out of the side.
Keane’s form cannot be ignored, though, and Moyes will face a conundrum over his centre-back pairing when Branthwaite returns.