Roberto Martínez is adamant there will be no deviation from the playing style he believes will bring long-term success to Everton despite growing criticism of his team’s faltering form.
The Everton manager is under the most severe scrutiny of his brief reign at Goodison Park with his team five points above the relegation zone after three consecutive league defeats over the festive period. Only Queens Park Rangers have conceded more goals in the Premier League than Martínez’s side, who have made the most individual errors that have resulted in goals against this season, while Everton’s attacking play has been stifled frequently.
Martínez, who will be without his first-choice goalkeeper Tim Howard for up to six weeks with a calf injury sustained in the Boxing Day defeat by Stoke City, admits Everton’s visit to Hull City on New Year’s Day is “a vital game for both teams”. But he insists the playing style is the only way for Everton to compete against the richest teams in the Premier League over the long-term and will not be sacrificed for short-term pragmatism.
“You don’t win games by changing the style. You win games by being very good at what you do,” insisted the Everton manager. “Changing only brings doubts. I’ve been in this situation too many times. Maybe when I was a young manager starting out you would start thinking about it after a run like this but it is very clear – in football you need to be outstanding at what you do. It’s not good enough to be average.
“Even for the short-term it is not going to give you success in the long-term. Are we going to concede goals? Of course we are. Are we going to lose games? Of course we are. But it’s important we know the way we want to play and that is never, ever going to be changed.”
Everton’s 3-2 defeat at Newcastle United on Sunday prompted various criticisms from television pundits, ranging from Martínez’s team being too soft to players being uncomfortable with how the manager wants them to play.
The manager responded: “I respect that people’s opinions and pundits’ opinion are part of football. We know as a football club where we want to get to and how we are going to get there. I will allow the results to speak for themselves. I admire it when a critic comes out after a positive result and gives negative criticism, not the other way around, because not everything is good when you win and not everything is bad when you lose. There is more to it.
“Our style is very clear. Our style was very successful last season, giving us the biggest points tally in the Premier League in the history of our football club. I’m very much aware of the needs of the British game. I have been here long enough and I’m not someone who works in percentages. I don’t work on having a good defensive record to win things.
“We work on other aspects and I like to have the talent that wins football games and to try and build something that will allow the football club to compete against sides that have spent a huge amount of money. When you concede the kind of cheap goals we conceded against Southampton and Newcastle then you are going to get those comments. But the pundits are only assessing those two games – they haven’t got the deep information or focus from watching that team over 18 months. That’s part of the manager’s job.”
Howard’s injury leaves Everton reliant on Joel Robles in goal for the next six weeks, with only the 18-year-olds Russell Griffiths and Jindrich Stanek as back-up. “It is something we need to assess,” said Martínez on the prospect of signing a new keeper in January. “The two young goalkeepers have been training with the first team but we need to make a decision quickly.”
