David Moyes has confirmed Everton want to complete a deal for a right-back before the transfer window closes, even though he believes he has internal options for the position.
Moyes admits right-back is a priority
Speaking after the 2-0 win over Crystal Palace, Moyes said: “We definitely would like a right-back. We would. But I think that we're all concerned about it because it's more that, for example today, while we're playing Merlin right back, I couldn't play him in midfield as well.”
The Everton boss had previously pointed to Nathan Patterson, Merlin Rohl, James Garner and Jake O’Brien as players he could use if the club’s longstanding issues in that position were not resolved. He made clear he would prefer not to rely on players out of position.
Rohl and O’Brien praised
Moyes praised Rohl’s performance at right-back against Crystal Palace but acknowledged the trade-off. “So, today keeps me short of numbers in midfield, and I'm having to balance a little bit of what we want,” he said.
He added: “Look, we can still play Jake O’Brien at right-back. He's proved, certainly against a lot of the quick boys, that he's really good and he'll give us something if we need it in that position. But he prefers to be a centre back.”
Rohl’s versatility impresses boss
On Rohl, who carried his pre-season form into the opening Premier League game, Moyes said: “He is keen to do well and show us that he could be a right-back, Merlin. And because of that, we're happy.”
“He can play other roles for us, which means that we can play him further forward, we can play them in different ways. He's got a different sort of level of athleticism to some of the other boys in some ways. And he's a good footballer, generally, and he can score if we get him closer to the goal. But he's also doing okay.”
Moyes stressed the standard for any new arrival: “Everybody's talking about a right-back, so I'm saying, well, I hope it's better than Jake O’Brien, I hope it's better than Merlin Rohl and what they're offering.”
“And obviously, we're always trying to get better than what we've got - in every position to be truthful. You're always, as a manager, you're trying and it's not that easy to just go and get yourself better than those two. Merlin in pre-season played really well. He certainly deserves the chance to play.”
