Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly added Everton's Jarrad Branthwaite to their list of centre-back targets for the January transfer window.
The Lilywhites were plunged into a defensive crisis prior to the international break, as first-choice pairing Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven both had to leave the field against Chelsea.
Romero was made to take the walk of shame for a crunching tackle on Enzo Fernandez, incurring a three-game ban in the process, before Van de Ven sustained a serious hamstring problem, which will rule him out until 2024.
With Davinson Sanchez being sold to Galatasaray in the summer, as well as Joe Rodon and Japhet Tanganga's loan exits to Leeds United and Augsburg respectively, Ange Postecoglou had no choice but to deploy Eric Dier and Ben Davies in the heart of defence against Wolverhampton Wanderers two weekends ago.
The duo initially justified their selections against a wasteful Wolves, but Spurs let a one-goal lead slip in added time en route to a 2-1 defeat, demoting them to fourth place in the Premier League table in the process.
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Romero still has another two games of his ban to serve, meaning that Dier and Davies will again be required to fill in against Champions League-chasing Aston Villa and treble winners Manchester City over the next couple of weeks, unless 18-year-old Ashley Phillips is fast-tracked into the first team.
However, Dier will enter the final six months of his contract in the January transfer window, and while a mid-season transfer is off the cards given Spurs' defensive crisis, the Englishman is widely expected to leave as a free agent when his deal expires.
Defensive reinforcements will therefore be priority number one in January, and Spurs have been linked with the likes of Crystal Palace's Marc Guehi, Bournemouth's Lloyd Kelly and Bayer Leverkusen's Edmond Tapsoba.
Now, the Daily Mail reports that Everton and England Under-21 man Branthwaite is also on Spurs' radar thanks to his breakout season at Goodison Park, where he has become James Tarkowski's first-choice partner under Sean Dyche.
After a successful loan spell with PSV Eindhoven in the 2022-23 season, where he registered four goals and two assists in 36 games and won the KNVB-Beker, Branthwaite has started 12 of Everton's last 13 matches in all tournaments.
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The 6ft 4in defender helped Everton claim two wins and a draw from their last three Premier League games before the international break, where he wore the captain's armband for England's Under-21s in a 3-0 Euros qualifying win over Northern Ireland.
Branthwaite only penned fresh terms with the Toffees in October, though, and the 21-year-old's current terms are not due to expire until the summer of 2027, meaning that Everton can play hardball in talks with Tottenham.
Spurs may also have to fend off interest from Manchester United if they are to strike a deal for Branthwaite, who came through the Carlisle United youth system before joining Everton in January 2020.
In addition, AC Milan's Malick Thiaw, Benfica's Morato and Sporting Lisbon's Goncalo Inacio are also believed to be of interest to Tottenham, who are also expected to target a new winger over the winter.
However, the Lilywhites apparently have no plans to sign another out-and-out striker, despite failing to bring a big-name marksman to the club to replace Harry Kane over the summer.
Ben Knapton
