Everton and Crystal Palace Swap McNeil for Johnson
Everton and Crystal Palace have agreed a straight swap that sends Dwight McNeil to Selhurst Park and brings Brennan Johnson to Goodison, in a deal that underlines how sharply both clubs are trying to reshape their forward lines.
Both wingers are expected to undergo medicals on Monday, closing a circle that, for McNeil in particular, has been emotionally fraught.
McNeil finally gets his Palace move
McNeil, 26, has been a regular presence for Everton, making 114 appearances and often carrying a heavy creative burden in a side fighting to re-establish itself in mid-table. Palace tried to prise him away in February with a loan move, only for that deal to collapse late and leave a bitter taste.
The fallout spilled into public view when McNeil’s partner, Megan Sharpley, criticised Palace’s handling of the episode on Instagram, describing “radio silence” from the club and questioning how players’ mental health is treated in high-stakes transfer negotiations.
“We live in a world where everyone is aware of how big a problem mental health is,” she wrote, before detailing how the winger had been “dragged along on an emotional rollercoaster” and left “with absolutely no explanation” when the move broke down at the last moment.
That context makes this agreement more than a routine piece of business. The move that once vanished at the last second is back on the table, this time with a permanent switch and a direct counterpart heading the other way.
Johnson’s fresh start on Merseyside
Brennan Johnson arrives at Everton after a difficult spell at Palace that never really ignited. The Wales international only joined from Tottenham in January but failed to score in 26 appearances for the south London club.
For a player whose game is built on direct running and sharp finishes, that return tells its own story. A change of scenery, and a different tactical brief under a new manager, offers him a reset.
Everton, who finished 13th in the Premier League last season, need more thrust and end product from wide areas. Johnson, still in the early stages of his career at the top level, will be asked to provide exactly that.
Palace, 15th in the league but buoyed by their Europa League qualification after winning the Conference League, are banking on McNeil’s work rate, delivery and Premier League experience to blend with a squad now used to juggling domestic and European demands.
An opening-day twist
The intrigue does not end with the paperwork. Everton and Palace meet on the opening weekend of the Premier League season, a fixture that now doubles as an instant referendum on this swap.
Two clubs separated by just two league places last term, both chasing a firmer foothold in the table, have traded wide men and, with them, a slice of their attacking identity.
The question now is simple: who will look back on this as the moment their season tilted in the right direction?
