Everton ‘reach total agreement’ to sign Burnley midfielder for ‘around £20m’ on five-year deal
Frank Lampard’s Everton have ‘reached a total agreement’ to sign Burnley and England U21 midfielder Dwight McNeil for ‘around £20m’.
The Toffees endured a torrid season in 2021/22 as they secured their safety in the penultimate game of the campaign.
It is less than two weeks until the first round of fixtures of the 2022/23 Premier League season. No doubt to Lampard’s frustration, they have only signed two players so far this summer.
Predicting the positions of the ‘other 14’ Premier League clubs and why
James Tarkowski joined them on a free transfer from Burnley and now they have signed ex-Wolves star Ruben Vinagre on loan from Sporting Lisbon.
The Toffees have been heavily linked with Dwight McNeil of late. He suffered relegation at the end of last season.
The Clarets deserved to go down in the end, though McNeil was one of their only shining stars.
The 22-year-old has already played 134 times in the Premier League, so he is a safe signing for any side in the bottom half.
David Ornstein of The Athletic is reporting that Everton have ‘reached a total agreement’ with Burnley to sign McNeil.
The deal is set to be confirmed in the next couple of days, with the player being ‘close to completing a medical’.
The fee for the midfielder is ‘around £20m’ and he has agreed to sign a five-year deal at Goodison Park.
In a recent pre-season friendly, Everton were hammered 4-0 by MLS side Minnesota United. They have sold Richarlison to Tottenham for £60m, while Dominic Calvert-Lewin is being linked with a move elsewhere.
Tottenham ‘insider’ John Wenham has told Football Insider that he thinks Everton are in “very big trouble” ahead of the 2022/23 campaign:
“They were effectively saved from relegation last season by Richarlison and they sold him,” Wenham said.
“Yes, they are in very big trouble. I know they signed Tarkowski on a free transfer who I think is fairly decent.
“Is he better than Godfrey or Keane, probably not? They are on similar levels. Have they signed anybody else at all?
“There are links with Cornet but he isn’t going to replace Richarlison’s goals. They are in deep trouble.
“Years of woeful recruitment, taking Dele Alli on £150,000-a-week wages has been an utter disaster for them but a masterstroke by Tottenham.
“It doesn’t look like he can score at all so now they are relying on Anthony Gordon who is still a young player.”
