The new Everton signing Dwight McNeil believes Frank Lampard will help him to rebuild the confidence and form he lost during Burnley’s relegation from the Premier League.
McNeil joined Everton on a five-year contract last Thursday for a fee that could reach £20m and he scored twice in an eye-catching cameo against Dynamo Kyiv 24 hours later. The 22-year-old struggled in front of goal for Burnley last season, failing to score in 40 outings and producing one assist as the club’s six-year stay in the Premier League came to an end.
McNeil admits his confidence deteriorated in tandem with Burnley’s toils but believes it can be restored under Lampard. “My confidence was low with not scoring or assisting last season and with the position I play that can hit you a bit more,” the former England under-21 international said.
“The Premier League is always hard but coming to Everton is a new chapter for me to build my confidence back up again. Last season my stats for my position were really low and coming here it is something to improve on.
“I think the manager can help me impact games more this season. He played the game at such a high level and you can see what he achieved throughout his career. I’ve spoken to him about what he wants from me. His compliments were nice to hear but he also spoke about areas where I need to improve.”
Everton were embroiled in a relegation fight with Burnley until the penultimate game but McNeil is convinced he has not swapped one struggling team for another. The winger said: “From speaking to a couple of the lads here and from speaking to the gaffer I know what the intentions are for this season and it was good to hear what they said. I wanted to be part of it.
“The gaffer spoke to me about things he could bring to my game and help make me a better all-round player. He told me what the lads are like, I know a few of them already, and what the place is like. From coming to Goodison in the past I know how hard it is and how much the fans get behind the team.”
