Official: Röhl signs with Freiburg
SC Freiburg officially unveiled Germany U20 international Merlin Röhl as a new signing late Wednesday afternoon.
The reported upon transfer of FC Ingolstadt midfielder Merlin Röhl to SC Freiburg is through. The Breisgauer have bolstered their midfield with the 3. Liga player for, according to German footballing magazine Kicker, a transfer fee of just under €1 million plus performance bonuses. The Potsdam native had reportedly been courted by other clubs, among them Borussia Mönchengladbach.
One reason Freiburg won the race may relate to the promise of playing time. At first glance, it may not appear as if the 20-year-old (who has never played above the second division, would be slated for the SCF reserves. The current lack of depth in central midfield in Christian Streich's squad may nevertheless see the youngster at least get a test-drive sooner.
Only Maximilian Eggestein, Nicolas Höfler, Yannick Keitel, and current SCF reserve player Robert Wagner lie ahead of Röhl on the depth chart. The gap left on the roster following Janik Haberer's transfer to Union Berlin has been a subject of concern for those handicapping Breisgauer prospects during their present Europa League season.
"The move to Freiburg in the Bundesliga is a great opportunity for me, and I want to take advantage of it," Röhl noted in a statement released by the club, "The SC is known for developing young players and I wish to follow that path along with the team and the coaching staff."
"Merlin is a very exciting player with enormous potential," SC manager Klemens Hartenbach added, "Watching him and in conversations, we've gotten to know him as very ambitious, energetic and inquisitive. He has great flexibility and is a well balanced playe. Merlin will certainly develop properly with us and we're looking forward to it."
— SC Freiburg (@scfreiburg) August 17, 2022