Jarrad Branthwaite's Journey: From Injury Woes to England Squad
Jarrad Branthwaite traces the moment everything changed to a clinic room in Munich, far from Finch Farm and even further from the Merseyside derby where he left the pitch in tears.
The Everton defender, once trapped in a cycle of hamstring and groin problems, is back in the England squad and pointing to a “complex” rehabilitation programme in Germany as the hinge on which his career has swung.
From treatment table to Three Lions
Branthwaite’s start to the season has been strong enough to catch Thomas Tuchel’s eye, earning him a place in the squad for Nations League games against Spain, Czechia and Croatia. If he gets on the pitch, it will be only his second senior cap, a reminder of how much time injury has already stolen.
Last season he managed just 10 Premier League appearances, his campaign shredded by repeat hamstring issues. This time around, he has been ever-present. Same player, different body.
That shift began when Everton, searching for answers as setbacks piled up, sent the 24-year-old to the MYOS sports and health clinic in Munich at the start of the summer. For Branthwaite, that trip changed everything.
“I sat down with the club after the three or four times where I was picking up the injuries,” he said. “It was to look at the wider picture, look at the holistic approach of the body essentially. I went over there for three or four weeks working with a team alongside the club, just to assess different things, and hopefully that has helped.
“There were a lot of different things looked at like movement patterns, the brain; it was quite complex, but fingers crossed it has worked.”
This was not the usual rehab of ice baths, gym sessions and hope. Specialists in Germany examined how his brain, movement and muscle patterns linked together, searching for the root causes behind the constant breakdowns. Branthwaite embraced the detail because the alternative was more of the same: more scans, more doubts, more missed games.
Derby tears and mental scars
The lowest point came in April at Anfield. Another hamstring injury in the Merseyside derby defeat by Liverpool, another painful walk off – this time carried, and in tears.
That moment ended his season. It also killed off any realistic chance of forcing his way into the World Cup conversation. Everton’s form collapsed without him, underlining his importance and twisting the knife.
“It is probably the worst thing as a footballer not to be on the pitch and I think when it keeps happening it is mentally tough because you are sort of doubting your body and going on the pitch wary of what is going to happen,” he admitted.
The physical rehab in Munich came with a mental reset. Branthwaite talks now like a player who has made peace with the past but is no longer haunted by it.
“I think now I am in a position where I got managed throughout the pre-season, managed my load well and hopefully I can stay on the pitch this season.”
A target reclaimed
He had already tasted England duty, making his debut as a substitute in a win over Bosnia and Herzegovina in June 2024. That brief outing planted a clear target in his mind: get fit, stay fit, get back.
The call came last week, in the middle of a quiet morning.
“I found out when I was having breakfast – it was a good start to the day,” he said. “It is a proud moment. Over the last season or so it has been a target of mine.
“When I have been out and not on the pitch, I wanted to get back playing and give myself the best possible chance to be in and around the England squad after missing such a lot of time.”
He has done exactly that. Everton have started well, Branthwaite has been central to it, and the defender now walks into an England camp stacked with elite talent with no trace of impostor syndrome.
“The season has started well individually and as a team. England’s got unbelievable talent and players all over the pitch. I believe I am good enough to be in the England squad so hopefully I can show that.”
The injuries, the clinic in Munich, the managed minutes in pre-season – all of it leads to this. Now it is no longer about whether his body will hold. It is about whether he can turn a hard-won recall into something permanent.
