Crystal Palace and Everton have agreed a straight swap for Brennan Johnson and Dwight McNeil – six months after McNeil’s partner accused Palace of “messing with the winger’s mental health” after pulling out of a deal.
The deal will see McNeil join Palace and Johnson move to Everton, with the wingers set for medicals on Monday. And GIVEMESPORT understands that no money will change hands, with the two clubs happy to exchange players without any fees being involved in the transaction. Should the straight swap be finalised as expected, Johnson and McNeil are set to sign four-year contracts.
Given that he signed a lucrative four-and-a-half-year contract in January that is believed to be worth more than £100,000 a week, Palace will take a significant hit on the fee they paid but remove one of their highest earners from the wage bill.
The 26-year-old had agreed to join the club on deadline day in January in an initial loan deal that would have become a £20m permanent move. However, the transfer fell through as the required paperwork could not be completed in time, even though McNeil had already passed a medical.
“Tonight, and the last 48 hours, have broken my heart to see how the football world you love so much can be so cruel to you,” she wrote at the time. “We live in a world where everyone is aware of how big a problem mental health is. So, in football, why do we find it acceptable because these young men are on a lot of money and that’s okay to mess and toy with their mental health and that it’s just part of the job?”