Aston Villa are reportedly readying a move for Carlisle United centre-back Jarrad Branthwaite in the upcoming January transfer window.
According to Football Insider, the Birmingham club have been following the League Two defender and have had club scouts watch the 17-year-old in Carlisle’s 2-1 defeat to Port Vale at the weekend.
Although, he has caught the eye of scouts at multiple clubs, so the Villans may face a battle to secure his signature.
Interestingly, Villa see Branthwaite as a potential star in the making and they are expected to continue to monitor him as they weigh up a move for him this winter.
The centre-half, who stands at 6ft 4in, has made a total of five appearances for Carlisle in all competitions so far this season (per Transfermarkt). Despite his first appearance for the club coming last month, Branthwaite has already impressed Villa enough for a potential January purchase.
TIF Tactics
Villa’s current centre-back Tyrone Mings has cemented his place in Dean Smith’s starting XI having played in all 12 Premier League games for the club so far this season (per Transfermarkt). If Branthwaite does make the move to the Premier League with Villa, then it’s unlikely he will slot into the first-team set-up with the likes of Kortney Hause, Ezri Konsa, Mings, Bjorn Engels and James Chester possibly all ahead of him in the pecking order.
In his five appearances for Carlisle, Branthwaite has averaged a total of 1.4 interceptions compared to Mings’ 0.9, but of course a comparison doesn’t really mean much as he’s operating at a lower level.