Tottenham, West Ham United, and Newcastle United are reportedly interested in Dwight McNeil, who could leave relegated Burnley in the summer.
According to a report from 90 min, Dwight McNeil could be offered a way back into the Premier League, as Tottenham, West Ham United, and Newcastle United battle for the English forward’s signature. The three clubs are said to have already enquired Burnley about the feasibility of a summer swoop for the 22-year-old.
Following the club’s relegation to the EFL Championship, Burnley are in danger of being raided by top-flight clubs this summer. They have already lost crucial players in James Tarkowski and Ben Mee, who are both free agents this summer. Meanwhile, other players, including Nick Pope, Maxwel Cornet and Dwight McNeil, are also rumoured to be on their way out of Turf Moor.
McNeil, for one, joined Burnley from Manchester United in 2014 before swiftly progressing through the club’s youth system. The Englishman broke into the first-team squad four years later and has since become an indispensable part of the Clarets’ first-team setup and a major source of creativity and spark for the robust Burnley side.
To date, the 22-year-old forward has racked up 147 appearances for the Lancashire outfitchipping in , with seven goals and 17 assists in the process. However, last season was one to forget for the 22-year-old, who scored no goals and had just one assist to show for his efforts in the league.
Despite being prominent in a lot of defensive and crossing Premier League metrics, McNeil has been underwhelming in terms of goal involvements, which matters the most. Despite his lack of productivity in the final third, McNeil seems to have no shortage of suitors, with a slew of top-flight clubs, including Tottenham, Newcastle, Everton, Brentford, West Ham and Fulham, understood to have already registered their interest.
Tottenham have already made major strides in the summer transfer window so far and have agreed to a deal to sign Yves Bissouma from Brighton & Hove Albion. But amidst high-profile acquisitions and with multiple English players’ departures on the cards, Spurs will need to make up homegrown numbers and may see McNeil as a handy player in Conte’s 3-4-3 setup.
West Ham, meanwhile, are expected to be busy in the summer transfer window. Manager David Moyes is keen on bringing no less than five first-team players to the London Stadium in this window to remain competitive on all fronts next season.
The Hammers could make do with someone of McNeil’s versatility. A reliable left-footed old-fashioned winger with plenty of Premier League experience, the 22-year-old English forward could be a potent weapon from set-pieces, especially considering the aerial prowess of Tomas Soucek and Craig Dawson.
As for Newcastle, Eddie Howe is a big fan of the exciting 22-year-old winger. While he may not be the most prolific of customers in the attacking third, McNeil is still a very effective player and always puts in a defence shift with impressive numbers, while his quality crosses into the box would help Newcastle get more out of January signing Chris Wood. It will be interesting to see where McNeil goes this summer.
