Everton Under-23s assistant boss John Ebbrell has offered an update on the fitness of Jarrad Branthwaite following his return from injury on Saturday.
Branthwaite became the first signing of Carlo Ancelotti's tenure at Goodison Park when he joined Everton from Carlisle United in January 2020.
The youngster made his Premier League breakthrough late in the 2019/20 season as an injury crisis at the back for the Blues opened up an opportunity.
However, the youngster joined Blackburn Rovers on loan in January in a bid to gain more senior football experience.
And after making 10 appearances for the Championship side, Branthwaite’s campaign was brought to a sudden end after he picked up an ankle injury in training.
Branthwaite immediately underwent surgery on the problem and he returned to action as Everton Under-23s beat Southport at the Pure Stadium on Saturday.
And speaking afterwards, Ebbrell revealed the plan for the 19-year-old, who lasted an hour, is to get more minutes on the pitch in the coming weeks.
“Jarrad was terrific in the game,” he told evertonfc.com. “He has had some time out, so it was great to get him back on the pitch.
“He did absolutely fine and played for about an hour. He’s a great lad and he just needs minutes on the pitch, so that match will be important for him.”
Goals from Charlie Whitaker and Sean McAllister handed David Unsworth’s side a 2-1 victory, who were without in form forward Lewis Dobbin for the game.
Dobbin came off the bench for the final 15 minutes at Old Trafford as Rafa Benitez’s side concluded their pre-season campaign with a disappointing 4-0 defeat.
“He’s deserved the time he got with the First Team and the chance to play in front of a big crowd at Old Trafford,” Ebbrell said on the 18-year-old making the step up.
“He’s looked so sharp and scored so many goals. It’s great to get this confidence in the bag and he’s showing so much potential, and I love how he’s worked so hard for the team.
“He’s been a team player and pressed from the front. He’s been really unselfish – but been selfish when he’s needed to be to score goals.
“He’s just got to keep that going. The next stage for him is to push on even further and we’ll be here to help him achieve that.”
