Updated This horrible news first appeared on social media, with The Bobble claiming that Jarrad Branthwaite had suffered a hamstring injury in training… and later it was confirmed in The Mirror that Everton’s star young centre-back would be missing for a vital run of games at the beginning of the new season.
This comes on the back of his absence from the Premier League Summer Series in the US and only adds to concerns about the player’s resilience, or the wisdom of his recovery plan, with the new season now only days away.
It’s a massive unwanted headache for David Moyes, who must have been hoping that prospects would be improving with the arrival of Kieran Dewsbury-Hall and Jack Grealish to boost his threadbare squad. And it comes on the back of a groin injury for Vitaliy Mykolenko that threatens to sideline him for a number of games as the new season begins in earnest with Monday’s trip to Elland Road.
The situation was begrudgingly confirmed by David Moyes on Friday when he told the media in his pre-mantch press conference: “Jarrad picked up an injury in training so unfortunately we are going to miss him. These things happen.” But he seemed more concerned that the news had been leaked out on social media, where the like;y duration of the player’s absence was mooted:
“No and I wouldn’t give it anyway, but I’m sure the insider inside the club will give that out, I’m sure of that. We have got to find out who is giving the news out.”
Before he continued: “I’m unhappy [with the news being leaked out]. All managers don’t like it. It is certainly coming from within our building and it is up to us to find out and we will do.”