Merlin Röhl has had a strange start to his career at Everton. He played in just 16 games during his loan spell last year, mostly due to injury, but when he did play, he was utilized all over the pitch.
David Moyes used the German on the right wing, as both a central and attacking midfielder, and he spent some time at right back as well.
The preseason so far, however, has seen Röhl used as both a right back and a right wingback for Moyes' side, suggesting one of two things from the manager's point of view.
The first is that Moyes is truly considering using Röhl in the position, either slotting him in as a regular starter or just giving the player some experience in a "break glass in case of emergency" type of situation.
The second is more psychological, in that Moyes is sending a message to the rest of his transfer committee and ownership as to the lengths he'll go if they can't come together and find a long-term solution at the position.
That latter part feels more speculative than anything else, while the former is certainly likely, especially as emergency option.
But that can't mean that Everton can just sit back and ignore the club's biggest need, even though they seem set on waiting for an ideal situation to come along.
On some levels, that makes sense, but as Evertonians, we've seen this movie before. That concept of waiting feels like the club trying to avoid paying too much for a player and hoping they can get a cutrate deal at the last minute.
The problem with that, of course, is that it forces whoever that player will be to have little to no time to get acclimated the squad, slowing his progress and ability to impact Everton's season as effectively as he could otherwise.
Röhl is here, which is why he's getting the run at the moment, especially since Nathan Patterson, the only other real right back option, is likely on the way out this summer. But that doesn't mean the club can afford to wait, or even ignore, the position, something they've done over and over again, transfer window after transfer window.
Ultimately, the player cannot be the reason they don't sign a right back. It's too big a need to ignore, especially if the club are serious about making this season more than just another midtable finish and really want to challenge for a European spot.
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