Everton

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German football expert Constantin Eckner believes new Everton signing Merlin Rohl will play more as an attacking midfielder for his new club.

The 23-year-old became David Moyes' ninth signing of a busy summer transfer window on deadline day. He signed on a season-long loan deal with an obligation to buy for £17.3m in 2026.

Speaking to BBC Radio Merseyside, Eckner stated that while Rohl can play in a number of midfield positions, he does not believe he would suit playing defensively for Everton.

Eckner said: "It's tough to pinpoint what his best position might be - he has played a number of roles.

"I don't really think he should play as a number six in the Premier League just because he doesn't possess the physicality you probably need for it - especially with Everton, what they want to achieve and the battles they will be facing.

"I'm guessing he will be playing a more attacking role, and we will see from there.

"He's technically gifted, but is he a number 10? Not quite. I could see him playing there, though not just as the type of player to deliver key passes, but also someone who can make a run into the box and be a secondary option."

Listen to more from Eckner on BBC Sounds

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We asked for your views on Everton's transfer window.

Here are some of your comments:

Pierre: I'm more than happy with the signings made this summer. Considering the mess EFC were in at the start of June (10 players left the club) I think Moyes has done exceptionally well to bring the quality players in that they have. It was never going to be fixed in one window, but more than happy with what's been brought in.

Tom: Happy with all signings, but we needed a right-back desperately. Jake O'Brien is doing a great job but he is a centre-back and we need that depth at centre-back.

Stephen: Once again we failed to sign a new right-back, a position that has needed to be filled for the last few years. Jake O'Brien did a great job last season filling the gap but we should have signed a replacement for Seamus Coleman! I wish Chermiti well and hope that selling him was not a mistake. Let's hope that Beto continues to improve, and the same goes for Barry - we need to keep them both free from injury, which is not the easiest of tasks at Everton!

Mark: Where's the right-back? Where's the goalscorer especially now with letting the young lad go to Rangers. Hope everyone stays fit, especially up front.

Steve: Great window, shame we didn't get a quality defender but attack looks great.

Tommo: A great window for us but we need a quality right-back with pace and all eyes are on Beto and Barry to see if we can avoid having to look for a new striker. If any of them can get 15 goals with contributions from the rest, then it could be an exciting season for us Toffees.

Tim: Generally an excellent window - top class young players brought in. Grealish has hit the ground running and is already a fan favourite. We've still got a defensive issue, especially at right-back. As much as we love Coleman, he is 37 and picking up niggly injuries more frequently. Patterson has never impressed during the brief spells between injuries. A miss on this front I'm afraid.

Paul: I personally am very pleased with the signings we've made. Rohl, the latest player to arrive, looks another exciting player to add to the squad of exciting prospects we've made this summer. Long may it continue.

Umir Irfan
Football tactics correspondent

Jack Grealish's loan move to Everton appears to have been an immediate success, with four assists in his first three league games.

And we saw a small detail of his game in the form of his assist for Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall during the victory at Wolves. After carrying the ball down the middle, moving infield, he played a deft, slightly chipped pass over a defender's outstretched leg.

It is a hallmark of Grealish's game that is rather atypical of traditional English midfielders and something seen more in South American players.

It's a tool - as author Jamie Fahey notes - used in small-sided futsal games, and becomes useful on poorer quality pitches, where the ball might get stuck or not carry as easily.

Given how compact defences are in the Premier League, players who can execute a scooped pass can progress the ball at times others would hold on to it.

Whether out wide or centrally, Grealish appears to be showcasing his natural flair and confidence once again.

Everton have completed the signing of Germany under-21 international Merlin Rohl from Bundesliga side Freiburg on a season-long loan with an obligation to buy in the summer of 2026.

The 6ft 3in midfielder joined Freiburg from Ingolstadt in 2022 and made 60 appearances, playing in several roles in midfield as well as deputising at left-back.

The 23-year-old becomes Everton's ninth signing of a busy summer transfer window.

"I'm really excited and full of joy to sign for Everton," Rohl said. "It's a big club, with great history and great fans.

"It's the right time for me to join Everton. It feels like a shifting point for the club. The future looks really good and I'm excited to be part of it."

Blues boss David Moyes added: "We're really pleased to bring Merlin to Everton.

"He's an exciting prospect who we've followed for some time, and we're all looking forward to working with him as we continue to build a squad and team at Everton."

What do you make of the summer business?

Is Moyes' squad now ready to make an impact this season?

Tell us here

Rangers have bought 21-year-old Youssef Chermiti from Everton for an undisclosed fee in the belief "he can develop into a top striker".

The Portuguese has signed a four-year contract with the Scottish Premiership club.

Chermiti came through the youth ranks with Sporting and, after he made 22 appearances, scoring three times in the 2022-23 season, he was sold to the Premier League club for a reported fee of £11.5m, rising to £14m with add-ons.

But he has since played just 24 times, only two of them starts, for Everton without finding the net.

Watch Total Sport's transfer deadline day special for Merseyside clubs, focusing on the business done by Everton and Liverpool, plus the region's EFL sides.

The show offered all the latest updates and analysis for your team's transfer business as the window shut.

Watch back here

Phil McNulty
Chief football writer

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Everton are hoping to conclude a deal for Freiburg's Germany Under-21 midfielder Merlin Rohl before Monday's transfer deadline.

Manager David Moyes has been searching for a powerful defensive midfield man and 23-year-old Rohl has emerged as the target.

Freiburg want £20m for Rohl and talks are ongoing over whether it will be a permanent deal or a loan with an obligation to buy.

If the deal goes through, Rohl would be Everton's ninth signing of the summer, the last being Southampton's Tyler Dibling in a £40m deal.

Moyes is also in the market for a defender before the window closes.

Shamoon Hafez
Football reporter

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Everton have already had a very busy transfer window, with eight new signings coming in for over £100m, including the eye-catching loan signing of winger Jack Grealish from Manchester City.

It comes after 11 first-team players left the club in the summer, including those who were on loan with the Toffees last season.

Sources have told BBC Sport there may well be further activity before the deadline and manager David Moyes has spoken openly about needing defensive reinforcements.

A new right-back will be high on the list, allowing Nathan Patterson to possibly depart on loan to Sevilla, while there is also a need for a centre-back following the hamstring injury picked up by key defender Jarrad Branthwaite.

Tyler Dibling fills the hole on the right wing, but a new central midfielder may also come in to boost the numbers.

There is interest from Scottish Premiership side Rangers in signing Toffees striker Youssef Chermiti on loan, so it remains to be seen whether that gets done before the 19:00 BST cut-off.

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We asked for your views on what is still needed by Everton on transfer deadline day.

Here are some of your comments:

Daniel: I'd be happy if we only brought in a right-back but a strong holding midfielder would be good too. Definitely will be a mistake to let Harrison Armstrong go out on loan.

John: It's very simple - we need two signings. A defensive midfielder to back up Idrissa Gueye and let Armstrong out on loan, in addition to a right-back. That would mean we would be able to let Jake O'Brien play centre-back until Jarrad Branthwaite is back from injury.

Joel: Great business by Everton this far. Well done, David Moyes and The Freidkin Group. A right-back is a must, with Hector Fort favourite. I would sell Nathan Patterson via a loan with option to buy and swap Youssef Chermiti for Nico Raskin at Rangers if we can't get Lucas Paqueta.

Duncan: A right-back! O'Brien does a good job for a centre-back. He's not really the problem. But we are again playing Michael Keane. If we get a right-back we can play O'Brien at centre-back where he belongs.

Mike: Absolutely need a right-back, plus cover for Gueye (Afcon will come around quickly) and also a proven goalscorer to take the pressure off Thierno Barry.

Tony: Build on this momentum! Moyes knows what he needs. Back him. Competition for places will drive this team forward. If we firm up the defence with full-backs and a holding midfielder, Europe is possible.

Magnus: The priority should be a right-back. I would then let the team settle and come back with one or two signings in the January window if there are weaknesses. Yes, the squad is a bit thin but I would rather see a more long-term approach with quality signings than bringing in players for the sake of numbers. With a quality right-back, we do have the basic squad with competition for all positions.

Today is the second transfer deadline day of the summer following a brief closure in June because of the Club World Cup.

In a change to previous windows, clubs only have until 19:00 BST to complete deals, bringing the Premier League in line with the EFL, Italy's Serie A, France's Ligue 1 and Germany's Bundesliga. The window in Scotland and Spain remains open until 23:00 BST.

It has already been a hectic window - with a number of storylines still to be resolved - but whether it turns out to be a day of transfer action or a pretty quiet one for your club, you will be able to keep across it all on BBC Sport.

Follow our live text coverage throughout the day here

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We asked for your thoughts after Saturday's Premier League game between Wolves and Everton.

Here are some of your comments:

Wolves fans

Chris: Wolves continue to gift goals with their defensive mistakes. Too slow paced and next to no movement off the ball. There were plenty of opportunities to play a through ball but none of the forwards, until the substitutions, positioned themselves to break through into the wide-open space beyond the Everton defence. A draw, at least, was achievable with better tactics and effort.

Mike: Defensive errors and misplaced passes suggest a lot of soul searching and hard work ahead. More quality and positivity is required just to be competitive.

Colin: Clueless. No attack, no defence and not much in between. This squad would struggle in the league below. The low points Premier League record is in danger of being beaten this season.

Steve: For 60 minutes of that game Wolves were submissive. Passing was shocking and we kept giving the ball away. Beto bullied all three central defenders. Fer Lopez looked class and should be starting.

Everton fans

David: We are showing more and more self-belief. We can win games, we can hold on. I love the way we move forward now. That improvement in quality in the final third is delivering. A couple more in on Monday and a decent top-half finish is possible.

Gareth: We finally have a number of players who love the ball and can make things happen. And what about the ringmaster Jack Grealish? Reminding everyone what a brilliant player he is. It's rare to be a happy Evertonian in August!

Dave: It's been a long time since Everton had a genuine game-changer like Grealish. The ball just seems to stick to him. He glides around the pitch and spots opportunities other players do not. Adding the industry of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and the trickery of Iliman Ndiaye, and Everton - one of the lowest scorers in the league last season - look like a genuine threat going forward.

Andy: Excellent away win. More nervy than it should have been. Grealish, Dewsbury-Hall and Ndiaye were awesome. If we had defenders of similar quality, then we'd be a real force. Shout out to Jimmy Garner for an brilliant display. Onwards and upwards, Blues!

Will Perry
Final score reporter

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You would have to be 'Captain Doom and Gloom' not to enjoy seeing someone with the talent and charisma of Jack Grealish, orchestrating a match and back on the pitch loving his football, with the exception of the Wolves fans who had to witness just that at Molineux.

Tricks, flicks, and two more assists, it feels like I watched a rescued animal released into the wild and back into his natural habitat. The shackles are off and the freedom David Moyes has allowed him in this Everton team will work for everyone, including England fans.

Grealish needs to be loved and what he has served up, albeit in just two and a quarter Premier League games, shows you how much he still has to offer.

Those long-suffering Everton supporters can get excited about the season - and it is not often we are able to say that.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall was also exceptional against Wolves - another hugely gifted midfielder who had to keep the stabilisers on his bike at Chelsea, working under a strict, system-based manager.

When you throw the hugely underrated Iliman Ndiaye into this picture that I'm painting and then sprinkle the flair of Tyler Dibling on top... am I getting carried away by asking the question: can Everton do a Nottingham Forest from last season?

Maybe. However, if the Blues are lingering anywhere near the bottom six come May, I'll eat everyone's hat.