Where Merlin Rohl will impact David Moyes' Everton as loss of former star now replaced
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Charlie Grace
Sun 7 September 2025 18:13, UK
Everton’s new deadline day acquisition Merlin Rohl is set to make his debut for David Moyes’ team after the international break.
Aaron Barton from Opta posted some graphics of Rohl from his last season at Freiburg on X (formerly Twitter) showcasing where he likes to play.
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The graphics show that Rohl operates a lot in the right half-space, and his addition may be welcomed by Ilyman Ndiaye who will look to push on from his right wing position to more central areas.
When assessing Rohl’s numbers on FBRef they shake out remarkably similarly to Abdoulaye Doucoure who left Everton in the summer.
Rohl contributes in similar ways to Doucoure as a box-crasher, generating 1.12 shots per 90 to Doucoure’s 1.09.
(Credit Imago)
The average shot distance of the two players also suggests their roles were similar last season with Rohl taking his shots from 18.2 yards out compared to Doucoure’s 14 yards.
Creatively the two are similar in their numbers too, with Rohl generating 1.59 passes into the final third and 0.89 key passes per 90, while Doucoure listed 1.54 and 0.98 respectively.
shot distance (yds)141.59Passes into final 3rd1.540.89Key Passes0.982.06Tackles + Interceptions2.041.12Shots per 901.09Merlin Rohl compared to Abdoulaye Doucoure
Finally, their defensive actions also size up similarly with Rohl’s 2.06 tackles and interceptions per 90 bettering Dourcoure’s 2.04 in the same area.
While Rohl may be used deeper by Moyes to accommodate Dewsbury-Hall as a number 10, the Scotsman will know he has a readymade Doucoure replacement waiting in the wings if needed.
The former Mali international was a vital presence in Sean Dyche’s relegation-threatened Toffees set up, famously scoring the goal which kept the club in the Premier League two seasons ago, but left at the expiry of his contract in the summer.
He was never the same force under Moyes, but any concerns about the loss of his qualities may have been assuaged by the arrival of Rohl.