Everton winger Merlin Rohl.
Photo by Alfie Cosgrove/News Images/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Everton were bereft of ideas in the 2-0 defeat to Chelsea this afternoon.
Everton were really poor going forward and hardly troubled Chelsea at all, with fans pointing the finger at David Moyes.
Moyes picked a defensive line-up as he decided to leave Tyrique George and Tyler Dibling on the bench, with Merlin Rohl, who has played right-back all season, operating as a winger.
With that said, the Scotsman has now come out in his post-match interview and explained why Rohl started on the right flank.
It's a first defeat of the season for Everton as they lose 2-0 to Chelsea đĄ Give us YOUR reaction đ
We don't have to focus on playing without a 9 cause we already are but given what we're being served up with on the wings it won't matter
There has to be something going on between moyes and dibling how a player gets MOM against Ipswich let's see iff he gets his chance week after that 2nd half performance
Probably not but given what Barry is doing time after time when a child could score that might be a good thing as we could focus on playing without a no9 or even grow confident enough to give the service without worrying it would be wasted possession đ€«
David Moyes wanted Merlin Rohl vs Chelsea wing-back Pep Chavarria
Speaking to Evertonâs media team, Moyes admitted he expected Chelsea left wing-back Pep Chavarria to start, so he felt Rohl was needed to help Ainsley Maitland-Niles at right-back.
Chavarria wasnât in the squad, so it ended up being a really strange decision from the Scotsman.
âWe expected (Chavarria) to start, with his attacking work,â the Toffees manager explained.
âWe thought the best person to work against him was Merlin. That was the reason for that. But Merlinâs played wide right, right-back, different roles for us.
âI thought he probably did better at right-back because he put in a couple of good crosses for us.â
In hindsight, Moyes shouldâve taken the handbrake off and given George the nod after his impressive performances this term.
The 63-year-old has a habit of going safety first in the big games rather than allowing his talented young players to attack the game.
Ultimately, he got it wrong today, but it feels harsh to criticise him too heavily. Moyes has overseen a very positive start to the season after a disastrous summer transfer window.
That was Evertonâs first defeat of the campaign, so itâs important to keep perspective and remain balanced.
Chelsea have one of the best attacks in Europe and could be in a title race in Spring.