Roberto Martinez is a man who has divided opinion throughout his career; is he a brave connoisseur of the beautiful game or a clueless hopeful out of his depth? Well, amid big links in regards to the Spaniard of late, our latest instalment of the Look at him Now feature will delve into his journey to try and discover the answer.
Well, one thing is for certain: you can’t accuse him of being boring.
Roberto Martinez is a man who demands a, shall we say, certain brand of football. And when we say ‘certain brand’, what we truly mean is a top-heavy attacking bonanza, where everyone and their nan in thrown forwards in a gung-ho-style push that would put World War I military tactics to shame.
Naturally, such an emphasis on attacking play left the defence open for a shafting on more than one occasion, and shipping 50+ goals in two consecutive seasons a result wasn’t exactly something fans were particularly keen on, especially given the plucky efforts they’d become accustomed to in years gone by.
There was also the feeling that Martinez was never really willing to adapt his philosophy and beliefs or devise a backup plan to which he could turn to when his go-to methods weren’t cutting the mustard.
After three years in charge, the Spaniard was eventually released from his duties following Everton’s 3-1 defeat against Premier League champions Leicester City and 3-0 midweek shocker against Sunderland. Not to mention the semi-final losses in the FA Cup and the League Cup the very same season.
To be quite honest, anyone who loses out to the Black Cats by that amount deserves to never get another job in the game. But to our surprise he did. And it wasn’t just any old role. Oh no. It was the holy grail of managerial appointments.
Indeed, you’d be lying if you didn’t pinch yourself when you woke up to the news that Roberto Martinez had been gifted the Belgium national post to command some of the most gifted players in world football.
Likewise, you’d do extremely well to convince us that you didn’t try to gnaw your own arm off when you learned that he had recently been linked with the Barcelona job which was supposed to be free for the taking, before Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu put a stop the rumours by confirming that Ernesto Valverde will return as manager.
Everton fans, what are your standout memories of Roberto Martinez? Let us know in the comments below…