Hodgson outlines reasons Palace signed McCarthy from Everton

When James McCarthy joined Crystal Palace from Everton in August 2019, the then-28-year-old had played just one competitive game of football in 20 months.

The Scotsman suffered a double leg break while with the Toffees in January 2018, but during his time on Merseyside and before, he'd had an admirer in Roy Hodgson.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference before McCarthy's first trip back to Goodison Park, Hodgson explained why he had 'persuaded' the club to buy the midfielder and how he has fared since arriving.

Hodgson said: "His fitness had been re-established at Everton but of course he wasn't able to break in to the team. He was spending long periods from the outside looking in and he…