Everton and Crystal Palace are in talks over a swap deal that would see Dwight McNeil join the Eagles and Brennan Johnson move to Goodison Park in the opposite direction. Both clubs are hoping to conclude the deal this week.
McNeil’s Palace move fell through in February
McNeil, 26, nearly moved to Selhurst Park at the start of February when Palace agreed a loan-to-buy deal that would have turned into a £20m permanent move this summer. The transfer fell through as the required paperwork could not be completed in time, even though McNeil had already passed a medical.
In a social media post, his partner Megan Sharpley was critical of Palace over how the collapsed move was handled. She wrote on Instagram that being ‘dragged along on an emotional rollercoaster’ and having the move ‘torn away’ at the last second had been deeply hurtful. The deal has since been revived, with Johnson now involved in the exchange.
Johnson’s spell at Palace
Johnson, 25, has played 45 times for Wales and scored the winning goal for Tottenham in their 1-0 victory over Manchester United in the Europa League final in May 2025. He moved to Palace in a £35m deal in January and helped them reach the Conference League final, although he was an unused substitute in their 1-0 victory over Rayo Vallecano as the Eagles won their first European trophy.
Johnson failed to score in 26 appearances for Palace in all competitions, including 13 starts in the Premier League. McNeil joined Everton from Burnley for £20m in July 2022 and has scored 15 times in 128 games in all competitions.
Everton finished 13th in the Premier League last season, while Palace were two places below in the table, but will play in the Europa League in 2026-27 after their Conference League success. The two sides meet at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Saturday, 22 August in the opening weekend of the Premier League campaign.
