James Tarkowski has spoken on Everton's hopes for Jarrad Branthwaite ahead of a fitness update on the defender
James Tarkowski has expressed Everton’s hopes over Jarrad Branthwaite as the Blues look to keep their most valuable asset fit for the remainder of the season.
Branthwaite made his long-awaited comeback against Leeds United as a half-time substitute in their 1-1 draw at home to Leeds United on January 26, and has featured in each of their last seven matches, scoring his first goal in 22 months in the 3-2 win over Newcastle United in Everton’s last away game. However, the ECHO understands that the 23-year-old did not travel to Portugal for the Blues’ training trip last week and there are concerns that his playing minutes might have to be managed over the run-in of the last nine fixtures.
Going off in Everton’s historic final game at Goodison Park against Southampton on May 18 last year and subsequently being out for the 1-0 win at Newcastle United on the final day of 2024/25, Branthwaite missed eight months of competitive football through hamstring injuries. These problems ensured he wasn’t on the plane to the USA for the Premier League Summer Series as the Blues headed to New York, Chicago and Atlanta.
After returning to play in the final pre-season friendly against Roma – the inaugural first team game in front of fans at Hill Dickinson Stadium on August 9 – he was replaced by Michael Keane after breaking down again. Then, when the Carlisle-born player was on the cusp of another comeback, he subsequently had to undergo a medical procedure in October to correct the issue after suffering a major setback.
FOLLOW OUR EVERTON FC FACEBOOK PAGE!Latest EFC news and analysis from via the Liverpool Echo’s dedicated FB page
With Everton returning to action at Arsenal on Saturday after an 11-day gap since the 2-0 win over Burnley, manager David Moyes is set to be asked to clarify Branthwaite’s situation in Friday’s pre-match press conference. In the meantime though, remarks uttered by Tarkowski after the Clarets game in which he’d opened the scoring against his previous club are now telling.
The 33-year-old said: “It’s nice to have Jarrad back, he’s had a difficult time. Injuries are part of the game but he’s had a really tough time recently and it’s nice to have him back out there.
“We know how good he is and how good he’s been for us. Hopefully, we can keep him out on the pitch and he can keep performing to at that level that we know he can.”