Everton star among 'trio of targets' for Tottenham as they seek to fix defensive crisis

Tottenham are reportedly looking at Everton's Jarrad Branthwaite to help ease their current defensive crisis.

Branthwaite, 21, has become a key figure for Sean Dyche ever since returning from a successful loan spell at PSV last season. Alongside James Tarkowski, he has shown he is ready to play at the top level and he continues to go from strength to strength with every coming game.

He also recently captained the England U21 side and he is starting to catch the eye of some of the league's biggest clubs, with Tottenham the latest to consider a move for him. As it stands, they have both Eric Dier and Micky van den Ven out of action and they have been forced to play full-back pair Ben Davies and Emerson Royal at centre-back in recent games.

It was also an area that they wanted to strengthen anyway, but a report from Sky Sports today has claimed that Spurs are targeting the Toffees defender in January, alongside Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi and Jean-Clair Todibo from Nice, as a possible priority signing. But it will not be easy to prise these players away from their clubs midway through the season.

His tall, lean figure makes him physically strong, good in the air and surprisingly quick which helps him deter opposition attackers but he also possesses a calmness under pressure and an underrated ability on the ball which are both high value skills in the modern game. For Everton, they have financial issues and selling one of their biggest assets would certainly help to ease some money troubles. Especially given that they could charge a high fee to part ways with the England youth international.

Given he recently signed a new deal, he seems committed to the club he has developed at and he has certainly been accepted by his teammates and the fans since establishing himself in the side. There is a sense that fans already are preparing for the eventual departure of him, given that he has drawn interest from both Manchester clubs and received high praise from Jurgen Klopp in the aftermath of the Merseyside derby, but it shouldn't be anytime soon as Branthwaite will be key to them avoiding another relegation battle this season.