There's still a long way to go until the transfer deadline passes on September 2, but as the first part of the summer came to a close, it's certainly Everton 1 Manchester United 0 when it comes to Jarrad Branthwaite.

Hot on the heels of Branthwaite's controversial omission from the England squad after Gareth Southgate handed him just half an hour of action off the bench in a warm-up friendly against Bosnia and Herzegovina at St James' Park, some trusted and well-connected sources came to this correspondent with fears that Everton's breakthrough star of the season would be Old Trafford-bound before the month was out. Goodison Park insiders though remained adamant that they were planning on keeping their most-valuable asset though and were actively planning for him to be with them next season, unless a mega offer comes in.

This was subsequently reflected in the ECHO's copy and to be fair to Everton, they have been good to their word. The Blues insisted that they would not be bullied into selling Branthwaite on the cheap with claims of a Goodison Park 'fire sale' this summer wide of the mark.

Given the PS80million fee that Manchester United paid for Harry Maguire in 2019, the PS75million Chelsea paid for Wesley Fofana in 2022 and the PS77million Manchester City paid for Josko Gvardiol in 2023, Everton consider Branthwaite to be in the same bracket and rightly so. When you also throw in that there is a transfer premium when it comes to fees for homegrown English players and left-sided defenders, then there is a strong argument to put forward that the player who only penned a new contract last October could even command a nine-figure fee and break the PS100million barrier like compatriots Declan Rice and Jack Grealish - who also didn't make it to the Euros - if he continues his meteoric rise of a similar trajectory that we've witnessed in recent months.

There has been a distinct air of arrogance from United when it has come to their pursuit of Branthwaite from their obvious and copious briefings regarding the situation.

On the one hand, there has been the grandstanding with conceited remarks that they "wouldn't be held to ransom" over a player it turns out Everton don't want to, or need to, sell. Yet when they did submit an opening bid of PS35million plus add ons, it was the kind of derisory and insulting offer that brought back memories of United trying to nab Marouane Fellaini and Leighton Baines from the Blues for a combined PS28million in 2013 before eventually snapping up the former alone for just PS500,000 less in the same window.

Maybe United's new part-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe is trying to be the big man and create the impression that after arguably over-paying for the likes of the aforementioned Maguire, Jadon Sancho and Antony in recent years, the days of the Red Devils squandering cash are now over. But as many successful tycoons who move into football have found - including Everton's very own Farhad Moshiri - it's seldom as straightforward to get your own way in the Premier League.

At the same time though, United decided to hand under-fire manager Erik ten Hag a contract extension until 2026 after keeping him waiting during their end-of-season review but failing to find a suitable replacement in a search that reputedly included Southgate being on their wish list but given the way the Three Lions have played so far in Germany that looks like it could be a bullet dodged.

Everton are now looking forward to the prospect of retaining the services of 'The Carlisle Kaiser' for what will be their historic final season at Goodison Park, and staying put within Sean Dyche's team with James Tarkowski besides him and Jordan Pickford behind him can be good for his own development. Also, on the back of the Tories getting a kicking in the General Election, the fact that the Blues crossed Stanley Park in the first place to construct Goodison as the first purpose-built ground in England is of course testament to them standing up to wealthy businessmen given their rent dispute with John Houlding.

In recent days we have heard how United have reportedly turned their attention to Bayern Munich's Matthijs de Ligt but with they could of course still come back in for Branthwaite. If they do though, Everton now hold all the cards and unlike before July 1 and the move into a new financial year in the football world, the fear that they could lose a generational talent for a fraction of his market value due to potential PSR issues has now been removed.

Given all the struggles both on and off the pitch at the Blues over the past few years, that in itself has to be a positive result. There is still plenty that needs to be fixed at Everton but hopefully better times now lie ahead.

Once Dyche's side do get their noses ahead then they're capable of holding on to a lead. That's what they've now got with Branthwaite as they look to shut out another Premier League rival.