Dwight McNeil made his first appearance for Everton at the weekend since his move to Crystal Palace fell through
Everton manager David Moyes has praised Dwight McNeil on his return to Everton action this weekend after shining both on the pitch and in training.
The 26-year-old saw a £20million deal collapse on transfer deadline day when Crystal Palace failed to complete the required documents and he has been waiting for his opportunity to break back into the Everton side since.
The opportunity came at the weekend, with McNeil playing 81 minutes at St James’ Park in the Blues' superb 3-2 victory over Newcastle United..
When asked what his return to the team says about McNeil, Moyes said at his press conference to preview Tuesday's home clash against Burnley: “I didn’t at any moment doubt Dwight, whether he was going to Palace, or whether he was staying here, I didn’t doubt him at all.
“I didn’t doubt how he would react or how he would play, he just needed a little bit of time to settle back in.”
The decision to start McNeil against Newcastle on Saturday came as a surprise to many fans after his absence from the team, with the two youngsters Tyler Dibling and Tyrique George remaining on the bench
Moyes reiterated his support for the former Burnley man, insisting he had earned his spot in the team, saying: “Dwight trained really well last week, so he got himself an opportunity.
“We’ve been trying to find the right balance at the moment between the likes of Tyler Dibling, Tyrique George, and Harrison [Armstrong] at times aswell.”
McNeil repaid Moyes’ faith when his long-range shot was parried by Nick Pope into the feet of Beto to put the Blues back ahead after Jacob Ramsey had cancelled out Jarrad Branthwaite's opener.
McNeil’s performance was a welcome one for Moyes, who addressed the importance of balancing his team with young and more experienced players
“We’ve been trying to find the right moments, and the right people,” Moyes said.
“A lot of them are young boys, and Dwight’s just given us that little bit more experience.”
Everton host Burnley on Tuesday night.
*Ensure our latest sport headlines always appear at the top of your Google Search by making us a Preferred Source.Click here to activate or add us as Preferred Source in your Google search settings.*