Forget Heaven: Man Utd must unleash teen CB who’s a homegrown Branthwaite

With no Premier League football on the menu due to the international break, most of the talk in the air at Manchester United in recent days has centred in on transfer gossip.

Indeed, the rumour mill has linked the Red Devils with a whole host of new personnel particularly in the centre-forward department, with Eintracht Frankfurt star Hugo Ekitike one possible purchase that is being intently looked at.

Another potential signing that is being talked about non-stop is the ongoing pursuit of Everton powerhouse Jarrad Branthwaite, with the Toffees warrior perhaps intrigued by the prospect of calling the Theatre of Dreams his new home if fresh reports are to be believed.

Man Utd’s ongoing pursuit of Branthwaite

New reports seem to suggest that the 22-year-old centre-back is considering his long-term Toffees future having been snubbed from Thomas Tuchel’s first England squad.

A move away from Goodison Park could well boost Branthwaite’s chances of more Three Lions opportunities, therefore, with the Red Devils still interested in clinching a deal for their long-term target, alongside the likes of Liverpool now amazingly taking a look.

A deal would well depend on how much United are willing to splash the cash on the Carlisle-born centre-back, with past rumours suggesting that Branthwaite would be available for around the £50m range.

Whilst that isn’t eye-watering money at the end of the day for a club of United’s prestige to splash, they might have a homegrown alternative already to the 22-year-old that will save them plenty of hassle down the line.

Man Utd are brewing their very own Branthwaite

Everton have reaped their rewards now for persevering with Branthwaite when he was still just a raw, wide-eyed defender attempting to cut his teeth.

Amorim and Co will hope their willingness to launch young and hungry talents into their own first-team picture pays off too, with the likes of Ayden Heaven at the back benefitting greatly from the Portuguese manager’s fearlessness in chucking youth products into the main team.

Now, with the teenage sensation finding himself out of action with an injury, Amorim could look elsewhere for a new starlet defensively, with 17-year-old Godwill Kukonki perhaps ready for his moment in the spotlight.

After all – back in December of last year – Amorim proclaimed that the imposing 6 foot 5 presence was adult enough to “handle the Premier League’s demands”, with the potential for Kukonki to take to the top-flight in a similar way to Branthwaite when he was given his breakout moment at Goodison back in 2023.

The United target would never look back when entering into the Everton first-team picture with seven clean sheets under his belt in league action this season, whilst Amorim’s current selection consistently let him down when looking at the table above.

With Victor Lindelof also out of contract at the end of the campaign, the time could now be right to start gifting Kukonki more and more senior chances away from the stale senior set-up, potentially winning the Red Devils a cost-effective Branthwaite subsequently.

Celebrated for his aggressive front-footed nature by data analyst Ben Mattinson – an attribute Branthwaite has in abundance – time will only tell if Kukonki can go on to prove himself as a Premier League calibre talent.

But, with United’s terrific track record of youngsters going on to make the grade on their side, the 17-year-old well might be Amorim’s next superstar.

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