Move over Branthwaite: Moyes has now unearthed Everton's new Heitinga

Everton are a different beast under David Moyes, but the recent defeat at Anfield illuminated some of the cracks fissuring the foundations of the squad.

He spoke pragmatically of the gap between the neighbours in recent years before suggesting, post-game, that his side are beginning to show signs of bridging that gulf, well worth their paychecks across the two recent Merseyside derbies.

However, Everton will need to strengthen this summer, while also fending off interest in their star man, Jarrad Branthwaite.

The latest on interest in Jarrad Branthwaite

Branthwaite, 23, has been brilliant since returning from a loan move at PSV Eindhoven in 2023, featuring regularly alongside James Tarkowski and being hailed for his “pretty special” talent levels by pundit Jamie Carragher.

However, that quality comes at a price, with the sharks circling and Football Insider recently revealing that the club would be willing to consider his sale if bids fell into the £60m ballpark.

Hark your minds back to last year, when Amadou Onana was sold to Aston Villa for £50m. The Friedkin Group would sell Branthwaite for the right price, but must be equipped to redirect the funds toward the squad in a beneficial manner.

Branthwaite is a monstrous young centre-half, but he’s not irreplaceable, and £60m is no small sum besides.

Luckily, Everton’s rebuild predates Moyes’ return; the Scotsman merely shaped the pieces together, strewn as they were across the Goodison Park turf.

Branthwaite is the star man at the rear, but he’s not the only talented Toffee in the mix, with one man in particular beginning to look like a former star in John Heitinga.

Everton's new John Heitinga

Heitinga, 41, enjoyed five years of his career at Everton, the lion’s share of which came under Moyes’ tutelage. In 2009, Everton snapped Atletico Madrid’s defender up for a £7m fee, and he went on to play 140 times for the club, notching five goals and assists apiece.

Now, he’s back on Merseyside, part of Arne Slot’s coterie as Liverpool charge toward the Premier League title. Forgetting this tarnishing feature, the Dutchman was a solid and dependable player for the Blues, way back when.

Moyes actually joked that he had “got two players in one” when clinching the Holland international’s signature, and in that sense, you could argue that Jake O’Brien is fast becoming the manager’s next version of the ace in this new era.

O’Brien was signed from Lyon over in France last summer, part of the crew who formed Sean Dyche’s last hurrah at the helm. He spent the majority of the campaign, under the craggy-faced manager’s wing, on the sidelines, but has come alive since the winter switch in the dugout.

Indeed, O’Brien, a centre-back, has started the past ten Premier League matches for Everton, all of which have come at right-back, an unconventional role for the Republic of Ireland international.

But O’Brien, 23, has performed his duties with aplomb, showcasing his tactical range with two important goals while maintaining a combative presence, winning 57% of his duels and averaging a whopping 4.7 clearances per game, as per Sofascore.

Whatever happens with Branthwaite down the line, Moyes will take solace in his Irish ace’s rise and rise over the past few months, proving that he too can be a player of versatility and importance, two for the price of one.

Hailed as a “revelation” for Everton by Irish Football FAN TV’s Paul Nealon, O’Brien has got what it takes to make further developments over the coming years, providing priceless service to Moyes’ side, just like Heitinga in the past.

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By
Dominic Lund

Apr 2, 2025