Ethan Erhahon Scout Report and Data Analysis
Ethan Erhahon Centre Midfield
Age : 23
Nationality : Scottish
Club : Lincoln City
Height : 176cm/5’9″
Weight : 69kg / 152lbs
Foot : Left
Contract Expiry : 30/06/2025
Season Stats 2024 - 2025
Starts : 28
Minutes Played : 2406
Goals Scored : 0
xG : 0.03
Assists : 0
xA : 0.02
Player Performance Review Lincoln City (0) vs Wrexham AFC (2)- 3rd May 2025
Ethan Erhahon operated as the sole pivot in midfield for Lincoln against Wrexham. Although Lincoln dominated the first half, Erhahon struggled to exert consistent influence on the game. He frequently dropped deep between the two centre-backs to offer a passing option during build-up. However, with Lincoln focusing on exploiting Wrexham’s aggressive wingback positioning, much of the build-up was directed into wide areas, limiting Erhahon’s involvement centrally.
On the ball, Erhahon showed a good first touch and composure, consistently comfortable receiving possession in tight areas and under pressure, even when isolated in midfield. He recycled possession effectively, completing 34 of his 41 passes (an 81% success rate). He also demonstrated the ability to play forward, regularly passing through Wrexham’s midfield lines into advanced teammates, with a good weight of pass, often finding his teammates’ stronger foot.
However, Erhahon was often left with too much ground to cover at the base of midfield, which exposed some defensive weaknesses. He struggled to press effectively and made only eight successful defensive actions before being substituted in the 73rd minute.
Key Moments in game
8:37 – Erhahon exploited a lapse in Wrexham’s defensive concentration, receiving a short throw-in before delivering a dangerous cross into the box.
17:34 – After Lincoln lost possession in midfield with Erhahon advanced, he failed to attempt a recovery run and walked back towards his defensive position. This lack of urgency was concerning and suggested a limited desire to support his teammates defensively.
44:44 – Made an intelligent forward run and played a brilliantly weighted through ball to the striker, creating Lincoln’s best chance of the game.
58:27 – Won an important aerial duel as the last defender against Sam Smith on the edge of Lincoln’s box. Had he lost this duel, it likely would have led to a Wrexham goal.
Lincoln City Manager - Michael Skubala
Wrexham AFC Manager - Phil Parkinson
Team Formations How they lined up
Lincoln City 4 - 2 - 3 - 1
Wrexham AFC 5 - 3 - 2
Team Shape and Build Up
Lincoln’s passing network showed a strong emphasis on building through the wide areas, particularly the right-hand side. The centre-backs and full-backs were heavily involved in early possession phases, while Erhahon (6) operated as a lone pivot but struggled for strong connections into midfield.
Lincoln often bypassed central progression, relying instead on wide build-up patterns to progress the ball into attacking areas. As a result, the midfield trio were not strongly connected, limiting Lincoln’s central presence.
Erhahon's Role The Lone Pivot
Positioning
Erhahon operated as the deepest midfielder, positioned just ahead of the centre-backs, tasked with providing a central link between defence and midfield.
Poor Connectivity
The passing network shows limited connections between Erhahon and the players ahead or wide of him. He was not actively used as a key outlet in build-up play.
Build-up Bypassing
Lincoln’s progression favoured the wide areas (especially the right flank), which meant central progression through Erhahon was often bypassed. As a result, Erhahon struggled to influence possession phases and dictate tempo.
Defensive Load
With few teammates consistently close to him, Erhahon was left covering large spaces defensively, forced into a reactive role rather than being proactive with the ball.
Impact on His Performance
Low touch volume Limited ability to control transitions Higher defensive burden without midfield support Minimal passing influence compared to what you would expect from a player in his role.
Lincoln City Starting XI Average Positions and Passing Network
Erhahon's Game How did he play?
Positioning
He operated mainly in a central defensive midfield zone, with a slight lean towards the right-hand side of the pitch.
Touch Volume
Erhahon’s touches are relatively sparse, especially when you consider his central role. A defensive midfielder typically has a higher volume of touches if their team is building through them — here, he wasn’t heavily involved in ball progression or recycling possession.
Isolation
The cluster around him is small. His touches are fairly isolated compared to the spread of the rest of the team, reinforcing the point that he was often left on an island, trying to cover and connect play without much support nearby.
Coverage Responsibility
The lack of compactness among nearby teammates implies that he had a lot of ground to cover defensively, trying to plug gaps across the midfield without close help.
Limited support
Teammates seemed spread wide, suggesting Lincoln’s shape pulled others away from the middle, which isolated Erhahon both in and out of possession.
Underloaded midfield
Lincoln might have either played a 4-3-3 with high, wide interiors or a shape that didn’t properly protect the defensive midfielder, meaning Erhahon had to do a lot of defensive screening alone.
Ball progression challenges
With limited touches in dangerous zones, it’s likely that Lincoln either struggled to play through him or bypassed midfield entirely by going longer or wider.
Summary Limited Influence
Erhahon (6) struggled for involvement in possession and was often isolated defensively, forced to cover large spaces in midfield without close support, limiting his overall influence on the match.
Progressive Passing Success or Failure?
Volume and Intent
Erhahon attempted 16 progressive passes, completing 10 for a success rate of 62.5%. Despite being isolated in midfield, he consistently looked to move the ball forward, showing positive intent from deep areas.
Success vs Failure
The split between successful (green lines) and failed (red lines) passes was fairly even. While he completed a decent number of forward passes, several high-risk attempts, particularly into advanced central areas, broke down — limiting Lincoln’s ability to sustain attacks through the middle.
Direction and Target Zones
Most of Erhahon’s successful progressive passes were diagonal into wide areas rather than straight vertical passes through central corridors. His longest successful passes tended to target the flanks, likely aiming for advancing full-backs or wingers, while passes into the attacking third centrally were riskier and had a higher failure rate.
Risk-taking
Erhahon was willing to attempt difficult, aggressive passes, reflecting bravery and an effort to break Wrexham’s defensive structure rather than simply maintaining safe possession.
Lack of Safe Outlets
With few nearby passing options in midfield, Erhahon was often forced into longer and riskier passes to progress play. This matches the wider theme seen in Lincoln’s passing network, where midfield connections were weak.
Wider Progression Focus
His most effective progressions were into wide areas, consistent with Lincoln’s broader tactical pattern of building attacks down the flanks, particularly the right-hand side.
Summary Progressive Passing
Despite being isolated, Erhahon attempted 16 progressive passes, completing 62.5% of them. He found more success with diagonal balls into wide areas but struggled when trying to progress centrally, often forced into longer, riskier passes due to a lack of midfield support.
Ethan Erhahon Player Review Summary
Technical
Erhahon demonstrated a good first touch and composure under pressure, regularly receiving possession in tight areas. He recycled the ball efficiently, completing 81% of his passes, and showed quality in his forward passing, particularly with a well-weighted through ball that created Lincoln’s best chance of the match. He also delivered a dangerous cross early in the game after exploiting a lapse in Wrexham’s defending.
Tactical
Operating as the sole pivot, Erhahon struggled to impose himself tactically during build-up, as Lincoln favoured wide areas to bypass Wrexham’s aggressive wingbacks. He offered consistent support by dropping between the centre-backs but was limited in his central influence. Defensively, he found it difficult to manage the space behind the ball and was often exposed when Lincoln lost possession.
Physical
Physically, Erhahon showed good balance and strength when receiving the ball under pressure, but his mobility over distance was a concern. When Lincoln turned the ball over, he lacked the speed and intensity to recover quickly, notably failing to attempt a recovery run during a Wrexham counter-attack. His aerial duel win in the second half showed resilience but was one of few defensive highlights.
Psychological
Erhahon maintained composure on the ball and demonstrated confidence in possession. However,his reaction to defensive transitions was concerning, suggesting a lack of urgency or defensive responsibility. His willingness to take risks with forward passes was a positive, but greater intensity and desire out of possession would be required to operate effectively as a lone pivot in a more demanding environment
Recommendation Final Thoughts
Erhahon is not suited to playing as a lone pivot in a team that demands significant defensive range, physicality, and pressing intensity. He has notable defensive weaknesses, particularly in defensive transitions, where he lacks both the speed and urgency to recover ground quickly. He would require a midfield partner to share the defensive workload, as he is not the quickest across the ground and struggles to cover large spaces effectively. Erhahon is best suited to a double pivot within a possession-based side, where his composure on the ball, secure recycling of possession, and progressive passing can be maximised, while his physical and defensive limitations are protected.
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