Jarrad Branthwaite believes Everton have produced the perfect response to those who wrote them off following the closure of the summer transfer window. The Blues’ chaotic and shambolic end to the window left David Moyes with just 18 senior outfield players.
Among those senior players, the Blues boss only has one centre-forward, Thierno Barry, and one left-back, Vitalii Mykolenko, in his squad. But despite that, Everton have made an impressive start to the season and head into the international break on the back of a 3-1 victory against Coventry City.
Winning run
The win over Frank Lampard’s side on Friday night was the Blues’ third in eight days and moved them level on points with fifth-placed Chelsea. Everton also have a Carabao Cup quarter-final tie against Fleetwood Town to come next month.
Branthwaite said: “I think as a group of players and staff it is where we want to be. The ambition at the start of the season was to keep an eye on the cups and for us it is to give that a real good go.
“I think we are in a great position now, but it is going to be a really tough match in the next round of the cup, but we will go there with confidence and pick up a result there.
“It is the same again in the league. It is just about chipping away and taking it game by game, and seeing where that takes us at the end of the season.
Response to critics
“I think that was said at the start of the season but the way we have performed and where we are sitting in the league, flip it on its head and say it has been a massive positive for us.
“I think I have said this before but we were sort of written off at the end of the season with the amount of players we had, the squad wouldn’t be big enough to cope, but I think we have shown we can challenge at the top end of the table. I think for us as a group it is to keep that mentality going.”
Branthwaite was one of three Everton players named in Thomas Tuchel’s England squad last week for the upcoming Nations League games against Croatia and Spain. However, despite his impressive form, there was no place for team-mate Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, who again missed out.
England squad
“The England squad is such a high level,” Branthwaite said when asked about Dewsbury-Hall’s omission. “There are some great players there.
“I think Kiernan’s recent performances and the way he has been playing, he has got a real chance to be in that squad. I think he just needs to keep going and he will definitely get his chance.”
Injury prevented Branthwaite from being named in Tuchel’s squad for the World Cup in the summer, but he returned and featured against Spain in September and Croatia last month.
“It was just good to be in and around international football,” the centre-back replied when asked about his return to the England reckoning. “It is a lot different to club (football) and new faces and new players.
“I think when you first go back in it is just about integrating back in and seeing the way the manager wants to play.
“It is down to how I perform for the club essentially. That is how you get picked and when I get the chance to play for England it is a privilege and I am always happy to be there.”
