Brennan Johnson

[Shogun]

I wouldn't be remotely surprised to see him start up top sooner rather than later.

[Bob Sacamano]

Moyes’s 2026 AJ. No doubt in my mind.

[TrevorSteven]

He’s miiiiilllleeeessss better than McNeil. His numbers will tell you that. And he can run.

In the last 24 hrs I’ve had mates tell me that Tavanier and Johnson are no better than McNeil… but then admit they don’t really watch any footy other than Everton.

And this isn’t to dig you out TS, but I do find it a bit cringe when our fanbase piles in on criticism of players at other clubs when we’ve been so shit for so long. City and Arsenal fans can call Johnson shite all they want, they have perspective.

And I do it too, but how many times have we signed players and when they’ve come here and we’ve seen them week-in, week-out, we’ve realised they’re actually decent? Could even file a 40 year old Ashley Young in that category.

I just don’t think our fanbase realises just how utterly shite players like McNeil are.

I understand you and I guess it is down to perspective.

I do not want Everton to be decent, to survive in the PL or to perhaps fight for a place in Conference League. Tell me I am naive but I want Everton to be one of the five best teams in the PL. For that to happen we need to be the best club when it comes to strategy, tactics, scouting, recruiting and training. We can´t buy the most expensive players, we can´t pay the highest wages and we can´t attract world class players by reputation...

Our club is using those facts as an excuse for us to accept them being poor instead of finding a different way of becoming the best. For me the signing of Brennan Johnson is a signing out of nowhere. There is no bigger plan to it. Its simply a sudden possibility and he is a proven PL player.

Look at Bournemouth on the other hand. They had to sell Semenyo and they bring in this kid from Brazil on less than half the wage of Johnson and with more the double of his potential straight away. They know what they are doing. They lost their whole defence last summer but they replaced them. They are planning for years ahead while we still have no clue what kind of right back we could get - so we are linked to all of them and perhaps end up without signing any.

They are planing, building and recruiting - at Everton they are just throwing things to the right and to the left. There is no structure except a horrible wage-structure that makes us loose to smaller clubs than ourselves - where we pay around 100K a week for players like Tarkowski, Keane and Mykolenko. Brennan is simply a confirmation that the club still havent learned.

[Trowel]

[Kerryblueboy]

Good McNeil is another reminder of the shite we bought over the last few years hopefully Johnson can rediscover his goal scoring form here and we will have another scoring threat

[UnsyisaRhino]

Not feeling this one really, as much as we need to get rid of dwight, this could be a poor for poor swap.

I've seen fans from palace, spurs and forest moaning about his work rate off the ball.

[Escalator]

Not feeling this one really, as much as we need to get rid of dwight, this could be a poor for poor swap.

I've seen fans from palace, spurs and forest moaning about his work rate off the ball.

I prefer to think this could be a good for poor swap until proved otherwise, no point in getting a downer on it yet.

[sam of the south]

How would we all feel if we got Johnson in, didn’t get Grealish, sold Ndiaye, and got Doué in as rb with the proceeds?

[dazfrancis]

How would we all feel if we got Johnson in, didn’t get Grealish, sold Ndiaye, and got Doué in as rb with the proceeds?

That would be an obvious downgrade.

If we sold Ndiaye, got Grealish and Doue and a more attacking LB then I think we're much stronger overall

Edit: And better balanced!

[AjaxAndy]

I think you have to ask why are we doing this deal instead of buying a winger for £30m who hasn't just failed at a club seen as a midtable rival.

The answer is almost definitely because we can't afford buy someone for meaningful money in this position. When you fully accept that you also start to see the positives of improving the team with signings like this, even if it's not fun and exciting.

Like I'd rather we went and got the next Rayan, but also I want us to improve the team, and the £30m winger isn't something we can buy, so we've go to wheel and deal in order to do that.

So yes some aren't digging it, and I get that, but also doing nothing and just not buying anyone would definitely be a poor way to progress as a team. This is a bit of a gamble but it has some serious upsides if it works. If it doesn't we've lost McNeil and increased the wage budget a bit. It's not the end of the world.

[dazfrancis]

I think you have to ask why are we doing this deal instead of buying a winger for £30m who hasn't just failed at a club seen as a midtable rival.

The answer is almost definitely because we can't afford buy someone for meaningful money in this position. When you fully accept that you also start to see the positives of improving the team with signings like this, even if it's not fun and exciting.

Like I'd rather we went and got the next Rayan, but also I want us to improve the team, and the £30m winger isn't something we can buy, so we've go to wheel and deal in order to do that.

So yes some aren't digging it, and I get that, but also doing nothing and just not buying anyone would definitely be a poor way to progress as a team. This is a bit of a gamble but it has some serious upsides if it works. If it doesn't we've lost McNeil and increased the wage budget a bit. It's not the end of the world.

Also, it's not a position we should be spending money on, given our dearth of options elsewhere

[MayorFarnham]

Feels like a deal between two clubs who can't get involved in the real transfer window.

[Lazarou II]

Just watched a lowlights reel of his palace career.

It's grim.

[Escalator]

Sounds like the lad doesn’t stand a chance, folk determined to write him off before he’s kicked a ball.

[Cozzie]

Just watched a lowlights reel of his palace career.

It's grim.

Partly the reason perhaps.

Whatever the reason, it hasn't worked out for him at Palace. He was pretty good at Spurs and Forest.

His drop off at Palace is concerning like but sometimes a change of scenery is all that's needed.

The main thing for me is that he is better than McNeil who he is effectively replacing. Just hope we get the Forest/Spurs version of him.