Everton and Palace complete McNeil-Johnson swap

What the report says

Everton and Crystal Palace have completed a player swap involving Dwight McNeil and Brennan Johnson, according to BBC Sport Football. Everton said Johnson, 25, has signed a four-year contract, while McNeil, 26, is moving in the opposite direction to Selhurst Park. The deal resolves a transfer situation that had previously collapsed when McNeil was close to joining Palace in February, after the clubs had agreed a loan-to-buy arrangement that would have become a £20m permanent move in the summer. BBC Sport reported that the move failed because the paperwork was not completed in time, despite McNeil having passed a medical.

Johnson arrives at Palace after a spell in which he made 26 appearances in all competitions but did not score. The report also notes that he joined Palace in a £35m deal in January. McNeil, meanwhile, leaves Everton after signing for the club in 2022.

The swap is notable because it closes a long-running transfer saga between the clubs and involves two players who were already familiar with the sides they are joining. More broadly, transfers of this kind are relatively uncommon in modern football and can be shaped by contract timing, registration rules and club negotiations, as reflected in this case.