Man United leading race to sign Premier League defender

Manchester United cruised to a comfortable 3-0 victory over West Ham United on Sunday afternoon. 

Rasmus Hojlund put the Red Devils ahead at Old Trafford with a low strike from long range, before Alejandro Garnacho doubled their lead shortly after the break.

The Argentine then added his second and United’s third, completing a comfortable victory for Erik ten Hag’s side.

The result leaves United sixth in the Premier League table, while the Hammers sit seventh.

In the wake of the game, it has emerged that the Manchester club are leading the race to sign an in-demand Premier League defender.

According to Football Insider, Man United are in pole position to sign Everton centre-back Jarrad Branthwaite this summer.

The report claims that Ten Hag and those in charge of United have made the Englishman a priority transfer target as they look to bolster their squad this summer.

Branthwaite has attracted interest from Manchester United

Branthwaite, 21, has been in fine form for the Toffees so far this term, making 26 appearances across all competitions and playing the entirety of 20 of their 21 league games.

The young defender scored an important equaliser to earn Sean Dyche’s team a point against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday afternoon – his second goal for the Toffees.

Having joined Everton from Football League side Carlisle United back in 2020, Branthwaite has since spent time on loan at both Blackburn Rovers and Dutch side PSV.

During his time in the Netherlands, the Englishman made 26 appearances across all competitions, scoring four goals, and the Dutch side attempted to sign him permanently last summer but saw their attempts rejected.

His current contract with Everton is set to run until 2027, but the youngster is likely to be the subject of intense interest from a number of clubs when the transfer window reopens this summer.