Jarrad Branthwaite and Merlin Röhl out for West Ham clash

Röhl seems to have been struck instantly by the Everton injury hex.

Röhl was injury-prone before he arrived.

Why do we sign crocks? We're obliged to buy this one.

Not exactly a ringing endorsement from Röhl's ex-manager at Freiburg, explaining why he sold him:

“There were external factors like injuries and illness, which Merlin couldn't do anything about and had to be accepted. After his return in the second half of the season, the team performed well, and it wasn't easy for him to get into the starting eleven.

“What role will Merlin play with us? On which position can he secure a regular starting spot? (…) What difference does he make in terms of points and assists? Because if you don't make such a transfer, you have to get consistent value on the pitch in return. Merlin also wanted to take this exciting step for himself – and for us, the conditions were right.

“I'm confident in the quality and quantity of the squad even without Merlin. He rarely played in the central midfield positions of six or eight, but was mostly deployed in attacking roles. Especially behind the striker, we have players like Johan Manzambi, Eren Dinkci and Yuito Suzuki, who we believe can develop well with regular playing time.”

So he is injury-prone and not good enough to get in the Freiburg team. Sounds like another Gbamin.

I understand we are a pretty poor prospect for any player. But is there really a point to signing players who are more than likely, or are prone to injuries?

Sigh...

His England career is a long way off. IMO he's been badly managed by Finch Farm.

Simply a team that got amongst them.

New ground, same curse.

At the time Jim, I couldn't believe we were signing the injury-prone Delph, turned out to be one of the worst and most expensive signings, considering he played so little games, the worst £8.5m ever spent.

Did Silva bring him in to replace McCarthy?

These are both young players with plenty of time to heal and improve. Let's see where we are in November, when they're both back, if not before.

A lack of interest in him, eh! According to The Mirror, the likes of Man Utd and even the RS are allegedly interested in signing him, possibly this January.

It should be called Hamstring Finch Farm.

Rob #21

He will still be at Everton in January.

You utter fruitcake

Last season was a recurring groin issue which kept him out for 3 months, but from October to end of the season, he was fit.

This year's is a hamstring as we all know and he was also out for 6 games with the same injury when he was at Feyenoord.

Grealish (loan) is the clear outstanding addition, albeit temporary, and Dewsbury-Hall.

The rest:

-Two substitute goalkeepers
-A left back who will be lucky to get a sniff of first team action (it seems)
- A right winger who might come good
- A striker who appears a little petulant on initial appearances

And we send out Harrison Armstrong because as Moyes said “will he get enough games” yet Preston appear only to be playing him from the bench.

It doesn't seem right to me. An injury to Dewsbury-Hall, Grealish, Garner or Ndyiae and I think it will get ugly.

I know that's incredibly frustrating but surely it's also fairly obvious (and sensible too).

We all wanted better, but if the club tried, there is very little other options than go after what we did.

Hopefully we can progress into the top 10, and look to improve again next summer. You're not going to fix 5 years of neglect in one window.

Some players seem to never have muscle and tendon injury problems, I guess they are lucky to be made stronger.

That is a concern. Consistent, progressive training reduces risk of hamstring injuries, but it needs to be a proper program. A program that builds strength, mobility, and tolerance to different loads.

Inadequate strength, poor load management, and lack of eccentric training are among the most proven risk factors. Finch Farm have a history of botched rehab and a dependence on rest and recovery after a hamstring injury, resulting in recurrence.

Finch Farm have a history of botched rehab etc.

What the Fuck!!! The mind boggles.

As I said before, we are all different and it does seem like some players are naturally made of sterner stuff than others, whatever training methods are used.

Always worth doing summat differently, I say.

I agree different players need different programs.

Jake #34,

That appears to be a general term. There are reams of stuff on training. Everton at talks can give of the best, regarding the extent of it.

The bottom line is Branthwaite is still not playing.