Everton's Flanks in Transition: The Future of Wide Play

Everton’s flanks are being ripped up and rewritten. David Moyes spent most of last season leaning on a familiar pairing – Dwight McNeil off the right, Iliman Ndiaye off the left – but that blueprint is being torn from the clipboard.

McNeil is on the brink of a move to Crystal Palace. Al Hilal are circling Ndiaye. Two pillars of Moyes’ wide play could be gone before a ball is kicked in anger.

A depth chart in flux

Inside Finch Farm, the options are intriguing, if unproven.

Jack Grealish was the headline act last season, arriving on loan from Manchester City and immediately lifting Everton’s attacking play. Across 22 appearances he gave Moyes a different rhythm in possession, knitting moves together and driving at full-backs. His first half of the campaign carried real weight before a foot injury in January cut everything short. Whether he returns is still unclear, and that uncertainty hangs over Everton’s planning like a low cloud.

Behind that, Tyler Dibling is still trying to turn potential into presence. Signed from Southampton for £40m last summer, he endured what can only be described as a lost year. Just four Premier League starts, long spells on the fringes and then Grealish’s arrival shunting him even further down the pecking order. The talent that persuaded Everton to pay that fee has not vanished, but Moyes has yet to find a consistent role for him.

Tyrique George is the opposite story: low profile, high impact. Brought in from Chelsea for £24m after a productive loan on Merseyside, he made only 11 appearances and just one start, yet he left a mark on his manager. Moyes publicly praised him as an “excellent boy with an excellent work-rate” at the end of that initial four‑month spell. That kind of endorsement matters. It hints at trust, at minutes to come, at a young winger who might suddenly find himself starting on opening day.

Merlin Rohl is another card Moyes can play. Used at times out wide, he doesn’t have the numbers or the highlight reels of a specialist winger, but he offers flexibility and tactical cover. In a squad where two senior wide men could walk out the door in the same window, that versatility becomes more than a footnote.

Strip it back, and Everton’s current wide roster looks like this: one expensive project trying to ignite (Dibling), one hard-running, manager-approved prospect (George), one utility option (Rohl) and a big, Grealish-shaped question mark.

McNeil, Johnson and a deal that wouldn’t die

On the other side of the story sits McNeil, a winger who had already mentally packed his bags once.

Back in February, a loan-to-buy deal with Palace was in place. The structure was clear: a temporary move first, then a £20m permanent transfer this summer. McNeil passed his medical. The move looked done.

Then the clock beat everyone.

Paperwork issues killed the transfer in the final moments of the window. McNeil stayed put, but the emotional damage was obvious. His partner, Megan Sharpley, took to Instagram with a blistering criticism of how the saga had been handled, questioning how such turmoil could be brushed aside just because footballers earn big money. She described an “emotional rollercoaster” and something “torn away… at the last second with absolutely no explanation”.

It was a rare public glimpse into the human cost of a failed move, and it left a mark on how the episode was viewed.

Now the move is back on the table – only this time, it’s bigger. The revived deal includes Brennan Johnson, with the Wales international set to move in the opposite direction as part of the exchange. For Everton, it’s not simply about losing a winger; it’s about reshaping the entire profile of their wide play.

McNeil’s left foot, his delivery, his work off the ball – all of that is being traded for Johnson’s pace, direct running and vertical threat. The knock-on effect is immediate. Moyes’ wide options are no longer just a depth chart; they’re a tactical crossroads.

Does he lean into the energy and pressing of someone like Johnson, flanked by a worker like George and a developing talent in Dibling? Does he push again for Grealish, who offers control and guile rather than raw speed? Does Rohl become the glue when injuries hit and fixtures pile up?

Everton’s wings used to pick themselves. Now they’re a puzzle, and the pieces are still moving.