Everton have signed Dwight McNeil from Burnley for £20million as Frank Lampard has made his first summer buy.
The winger has agreed a five-year contract at Goodison Park and is reunited with his former Burnley team-mate James Tarkowski, who Lampard recruited on a free transfer, and loan arrival Ruben Vinagre.
However, McNeil is the first buy as Everton start to spend the proceeds of Richarlison’s £60 million sale to Tottenham and have responded to Lampard’s comments that there was a “void” in attack after the Brazilian’s departure.
The 22-year-old, who was a product of Burnley’s academy, made 147 appearances for the Clarets, becoming an England Under-21 international.
McNeil said: “It is an amazing feeling to sign. I feel playing under a manager like Frank Lampard, he will help me to get my stats up – and that is what I want to do and improve my game.
“I am a direct runner with the ball. I like to get on the ball, cut inside and create chances for the team. I want to help the team as best as I can, work hard and do the defensive side of the game, too.”
Everton, who were conscious of a need to get players with better fitness records after being hit by injuries last season, noted that McNeil had only missed two Premier League games since December 2018.
Lampard said: “I have been a big admirer of Dwight for some time. He has huge talent and is exactly the type of player we want to bring into the squad to help us improve.”
McNeil’s departure means the exodus from Turf Moor has continued after relegation with Nick Pope sold to Newcastle and Nathan Collins to Wolves, Wout Weghorst loaned to Besiktas and Ben Mee, Erik Pieters, Phil Bardsley, Aaron Lennon, Dale Stephens and Tarkowski leaving when their contracts expired. Maxwel Cornet, who has also been on Everton’s radar, could become the next to leave Burnley.
