Everton star 'should' have been picked for Euro 2024 claims Jamie Carragher and the stats back it up

Jamie Carragher believes that Everton star Jarrad Branthwaite should have been chosen to go the Euro 2024 Championships, but claimed it wasn’t a crisis decision.

England fans had their first chance of the Euro 2024 summer to lash out at Gareth Southgate in typical fashion as he presented his 26-man squad for the summer. The seven unfortunate players who failed to make the cut included.

Jack Grealish, Harry Maguire, James Maddison, James Trafford, Curtis Jones Jarrell Quansah and Jarrad Branthwaite. Players who chosen on form and with their availability in mind but the omission of the Everton defender certainly seems unfair.

Branthwaite won both the Players’ Player and Young Player of the Season awards for his exceptional campaign and the 21-year-old has firmly established himself as one of the best young defenders in Europe in his first full season in England’s top-flight.

Even Carragher took to X to voice his disappointment over the decision but he claimed that it isn’t necessarily the crisis that people think. He said: “Lots of bigger names than Jarrad Branthwaite have missed out on the England squad, but he should’ve been picked to go to EURO2024 he’s England’s present & future.”

Picked over him in that position was Joe Gomez, Lewis Dunk, John Stones and Marc Guehi, with Southgate claiming he chose players based on performance.

His reasoning was: “I think it's a bit early for Jarrad, for him to be in ahead of the others, wouldn't have been the right call, at this stage.”

Speaking in comparison to the likes of Guehi and Dunk, it is true those two have featured for England quite heavily since the end of the 2022 World Cup and are experienced at international level but neither have big tournament experience. Plus, it also isn’t factually wrong to say Branthwaite has had a better season than both.

In fact, his numbers stacked up with the very best in the Premier League; he was one of three centre-backs to win 65% or more of 250 or more total duels alongside Champions League winner Virgil van Dijk and World Cup winner Cristian Romero - that’s the company he finds himself in.

He was a key figure in Sean Dyche’s defensive outfit who recorded the fourth-best defence in England. Alongside James Tarkowski, who also arguably had a better season than the aforementioned duo, they were dogged, smart and hugely effective in both boxes and proved to be one of the most consistent and best partnerships in the league.

His time will surely come following the tournament as his potential looks to be vast and his composure, calmness and poise bodes well for England’s future in that role. Time will tell whether Southgate made the right call with Dunk and Guehi who will play key roles across the next month.