Roberto Martínez has said Evertonian frustrations over squandered points are legitimate but called for unity ahead of “a vital” period in the club’s season.
Everton host the Premier League leaders, Leicester City, on Saturday having undermined their own Champions League prospects with three consecutive draws, the last, at Norwich City last weekend, prompting boos on the final whistle from the away supporters. Martínez’s team produced a dominant first-half performance at Carrow Road only to lose their way after conceding from a set piece – a failing that has frequently undermined eye-catching displays this season. Everton also blew a two-goal advantage plus a 95th-minute lead in the previous away game, at Bournemouth.
The 1-1 draw at Norwich left Everton 10th in the table and 12 points behind Claudio Ranieri’s side. Martínez, who has designs on a top-four finish and has admitted his team must “achieve” this season, thinks supporters’ anger is understandable but is adamant Everton will become a leading side if allowed to develop.
“The way we performed in the first half at Norwich is as dominant a performance as you’re going to see from an away side so you can understand that reaction,” said the Everton manager of the final-whistle jeers. “The overall picture is we should’ve got an extra six points because we’ve been so consistent over the three games. But you don’t get that sort of consistency unless you’re a team that’s expected to win the league so I think we have to be a little bit more understanding, our team needs support now and we need to help the players as a football club.
“We have shown signs of becoming a top side during this period. Now we need to become a winning team and that brings a bit of understanding, knowhow, how to defend the box, not getting done in certain dead-ball situations.
“It’s a period in which, if we become a better team, we will get the benefits. We could easily have got those six points, been in fourth place on 29 points and expected that we are at that level and all of a sudden you don’t keep the standards.”
For all the praise that Everton’s play and individuals such as Romelu Lukaku, Gerard Deulofeu, John Stones and Ross Barkley have attracted this season, the team have won only two of their last nine Premier League fixtures. Martínez admits his young team are entering a defining period.
He added: “The next eight weeks are vital for us. It’s about how good we can become in this period. It’s not about how many points we can get, it’s about how good we can be as a team, what sort of understanding the young players can get of how to manage scorelines and how to manage certain moments of the game. The attitude and character of the players is special and what we do on the ball is exciting but if you don’t get three points you can’t be satisfied. I think the fans’ reaction at Norwich was a disappointment that we all shared but there is a real sense amongst every Evertonian that this is a special group of players.”
Only Swansea City and Norwich City have conceded more goals from set pieces than Everton’s seven this season and Martínez admits that weakness must be addressed, in the mind as well as on the training ground.
“We have conceded too many goals from dead-ball areas and have to look at how we can be better,” he said. “I have always felt defending a box is a mentality. Throughout history, you always get good examples of very small defenders who can get in the way of tall attackers. Chile are one of the shortest teams in world football but defend with confidence. Barcelona are not the tallest but have found a way to cope with teams that are physically stronger. We are in the same type of process. We are a creative team and we always want to get on the ball and break teams down. Sometimes you have to change that mindset when you are defending. When you are defending, you need to be negative and destructive in what you do.
“We have got great potential but we are not there yet. Results show that. The key is to see what we can improve but, at the same time, we should not compromise and lose anything.”
