The loan deal for Merlin Rohl contained an obligation for it to become permanent in the event Everton avoided relegation – something that has now been achieved
Merlin Rohl is challenged by Ian Maatsen during the Premier League match between Aston Villa and Everton at Villa Park. Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images
Merlin Rohl is now expected to become an Everton player in the summer.
Results at the weekend made the Blues mathematically safe from relegation from the Premier League with Tottenham Hotspur unable to catch them after their stoppage time heartbreak at the hands of Brighton and Hove Albion.
Everton’s top flight survival is the condition that should trigger the conversion of Rohl’s loan move from Freiburg into a permanent one. The deal is understood to be worth around £18m.
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Rohl has, at times, impressed behind the scenes since his summer deadline day move from the Bundesliga. But a series of injuries have curtailed his ability to have a serious impact on David Moyes’ first team.
There have been good performances, most notably in the valuable away wins at Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa, victories secured with depleted squads during a winter in which Moyes was without a host of key stars.
But the return of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall from injury and Idrissa Gueye from the Africa Cup of Nations, combined with the impressive form of James Garner, have limited the 23-year-old’s chances.
The obligation to make the deal permanent upon Everton securing survival was confirmed by Freiburg when the loan move was secured. Georginio Rutter’s late equaliser for Brighton at Spurs on Saturday evening left the London club 16 points behind Everton with just five games to play.