Brennan Johnson's Perfect Fit at Everton: Expectations and Opportunities
Lee Trundle believes Brennan Johnson has walked into the perfect storm at Everton – and that David Moyes is exactly the manager to turn raw promise into Goodison Park heroism.
The Wales forward has signed a four-year deal with the Toffees as part of a swap that sent Dwight McNeil to Crystal Palace, a bold, high-profile trade between two clubs trying to sharpen their attacking edge. Johnson arrives on Merseyside with medals in his luggage and expectation on his shoulders.
A great signing – and a big opportunity
Trundle, who knows both the demands of the Welsh game and the culture of Everton, did not hide his enthusiasm when speaking on the BBC’s Feast of Football podcast.
"With Johnson coming in, I think that's a great signing and he's someone I'm excited about," he said, making it clear he sees more than just another forward added to the squad.
For Trundle, the key is Moyes.
"I think Moyes will get the best out of him, I think Moyes is a good manager for him," he said. In other words, this is not just about minutes on the pitch; it is about a manager who thrives on structure, discipline and clarity of role, and a player whose versatility has sometimes left him drifting between positions.
Johnson has played wide, at wing-back and through the middle. That flexibility helped him climb through the ranks at Lincoln City, Nottingham Forest, Tottenham Hotspur and Crystal Palace. It also means Moyes has options. Trundle suspects the answer is simple: treat him as a striker.
A No 9 in waiting?
Everton’s long-standing problem has not been chance creation. It has been finishing. Trundle cut straight to that point.
"If you look at Everton, they create a lot of chances, they just don't take the chances," he said. "I think if he's in those positions to get those chances, he takes more of them."
With Beto and Thierno Barry still searching for consistency as the club’s main forwards, the door is wide open for Johnson to claim the central role.
Trundle, an Everton fan himself, can already picture the connection if the goals start to flow.
"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."
That word – idolise – carries weight at a club built on its relationship between terrace and centre-forward. Goodison has always had a special place for strikers who run in behind, work relentlessly and seize the big moments. Trundle is convinced Johnson fits that mould.
"He will go in behind, he'll score goals himself and create himself as well," he added. Direct, aggressive, busy. Exactly the profile Moyes has leaned on throughout his career.
Proven on big stages, tested by bigger demands
Johnson does not arrive as a prospect untouched by pressure. He helped Nottingham Forest climb out of the Championship under Steve Cooper in the 2021-22 season, part of a group that dragged a historic club back into the Premier League.
He then moved on to Tottenham, where he won the Europa League and scored the winner in the final against Manchester United – a moment that underlined his ability to deliver when the stage is at its brightest. Last season he lifted the Conference League with Crystal Palace, adding another European trophy to a growing list of honours.
Those achievements stand in stark contrast to Everton’s 31-year wait for silverware. That gap forms the backdrop to every new signing, every false dawn, every promise that this time will be different.
Former Wales striker Nathan Blake believes that context changes everything for Johnson at Hill Dickinson Stadium.
"Everton fans are demanding," he 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."
The medals on Johnson’s CV will buy him respect. They will not buy him time.
Blake was blunt about the stakes: "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."
Ten to fifteen games. That is the window Blake believes Johnson has to turn potential into production before the scrutiny intensifies. At Everton, forwards do not just play; they carry the mood of the place.
Blake still sees the upside in that pressure. "The coaching and the experience of Moyes and his backroom staff, they'll coach him to improve," he said. The message is clear: the tools are there, the support is there, but the responsibility is Johnson’s.
He arrives as a Europa League winner, a promotion winner, a Conference League winner. Now he steps into a club starved of trophies, with a fanbase desperate for a new attacking talisman.
If he finds his goalscoring stride early under Moyes, Brennan Johnson will not just settle at Everton. He will change the temperature of the whole season.
