Brennan Johnson's Bold Move to Everton: A Perfect Fit with David Moyes

Lee Trundle believes Brennan Johnson has walked into the perfect storm at Everton – and that David Moyes is exactly the manager to turn him into a hero on Merseyside.

The Wales forward has signed a four-year deal with the Toffees as part of a straight-talking swap: Johnson in from Crystal Palace, Dwight McNeil heading the other way to Selhurst Park. It’s a bold move for a club that has spent years searching for a reliable cutting edge.

Trundle, who knows a thing or two about goals from his days at Wrexham, Swansea City, Bristol City and Leeds United, is convinced Everton have landed a player built for the Goodison glare.

“With Johnson coming in, I think that's a great signing and he's someone I'm excited about,” he said on the BBC’s Feast of Football podcast. “I think Moyes will get the best out of him, I think Moyes is a good manager for him.”

That line matters. Moyes has built a career on organising teams, demanding work-rate and squeezing every last drop from forwards who buy into his methods. Johnson, at 25, arrives with medals, versatility and something Everton have craved for years: movement and menace in the final third.

Trundle can already picture the connection.

“I think he'll go in, and once he starts scoring, I think the fans will take to him,” he said. “I think he'll love being at a club like Everton because once you get in and score those goals, the fans will idolise you, especially because that's what they've been crying out for.”

Everton’s need is obvious. The chances are there; the finishing hasn’t been. Beto and Thierno Barry have flickered rather than burned, leaving Moyes with a frontline that works hard but rarely convinces.

Johnson, though, is a different type of problem for defenders. He has played wide, at wing-back, off the front and through the middle for clubs including Tottenham Hotspur, Lincoln City and Nottingham Forest. That tactical flexibility gives Moyes options, but Trundle sees one role in particular.

If Everton are to turn territory into goals, he wants Johnson as the spearhead.

“If you look at Everton, they create a lot of chances, they just don't take the chances,” Trundle said. “I think if he's in those positions to get those chances, he takes more of them.”

Then came the detail that will intrigue Everton supporters used to forwards waiting for service rather than forcing it.

“He will go in behind, he'll score goals himself and create himself as well,” Trundle added.

This is not a raw prospect turning up in hope. Johnson has already lived through pressure campaigns. He helped fire Nottingham Forest to promotion from the Championship under Steve Cooper in 2021-22, then stepped onto the European stage and delivered.

At Spurs, he won the Europa League, scoring the winner against Manchester United in the final. At Crystal Palace last season, he lifted the Conference League. He arrives at Everton with European trophies in his locker, even if his new club has been starved of silverware for 31 years.

That drought frames everything at Hill Dickinson Stadium. It shapes the mood, the expectations, the impatience. Former Wales striker Nathan Blake, who has seen the weight of big clubs up close, believes Johnson will feel that from day one.

“Everton fans are demanding,” Blake said. “Whether you like it or not, it doesn't matter if you haven't won a trophy for a long time, that's a big club. I think there'll be more demand on him there.”

There is no soft landing in that assessment. No talk of bedding-in periods or gentle adaptation. Blake is clear: the forward who joined Palace for a then club-record fee in January will have to justify his Everton move quickly.

“Having Moyes and [assistant manager Billy] McKinlay could be a good thing, but if he doesn't produce in the first 10 to 15 games, it catches up with you,” Blake warned.

That, ultimately, is the challenge Johnson has signed up for. A manager renowned for drilling discipline into his teams. An assistant steeped in Premier League experience. A fanbase that has waited too long for a striker to grab a season by the throat.

Blake still sees that as an opportunity rather than a threat.