da pinup bet： It’s not looking good for Roberto Martinez at Everton.
da betobet： The ex-Wigan boss is teetering on the brink of the sack at Goodison Park, and he may well be out the door before the end of the season. Last weekend’s FA Cup semi-final defeat to Manchester United looks to have finally used up the last ounce of patience the Everton fans had. The Toffees are now seven Premier League games without a win and their current 11th place in the league only tells a tenth of the story of their season.
Everton have one of the most talented squads they have had in decades right now – as shown by the big clubs’ interest in many of their stars – and Martinez’s failure to learn from his mistakes is drastically holding the club back. The defensive structure is akin to Brazil’s against Germany in the 2014 World Cup, and team selection continues to baffle as Gerard Deulofeu – despite always looking a creative threat – rarely starts. Martinez’s problems at Everton, most worryingly, are not dissimilar to those he had at Wigan and, although he was excused because of the minute finances he had to work with in the North West, he has no such get out of jail card on Merseyside.
Ross Barkley, Romelu Lukaku and the under-fire John Stones have all been linked with moves away to some of Europe’s biggest clubs. Stones’ recent form hasn’t damaged his credentials too much, it seems, and Barkley’s slight stagnation hasn’t turned off the preying Manchester clubs.
These three in particular must be wondering why they are still at the club. Other squad members, including Kevin Mirallas, James McCarthy and Seamus Coleman, have also been linked with moves, but it is the three most talked about stars that must be questioning their career decisions.
Lukaku has continued to establish himself as one of the most promising strikers in European football and, despite failing to develop the subtleties of his game, he would be hugely sought after if available. Has Martinez helped Lukaku’s development? Giving him regular minutes has done, but the fact that he has been used as a battering ram continuously has not really cultured Lukaku’s game any more than when he was a bulky, fresh-faced teenager at Chelsea.
Barkley, on the other hand, has notably stagnated this season. His contribution statistically looks to have improved, whilst his all-round game does not seem any more rounded or mature than it was 12 or 18 months ago. Surging runs, eight league goals and seven league assists sounds good and well, but Barkley has drastically slipped into the shadow of Dele Alli. This was likely to happen with the relative positions of Spurs and Everton, although Barkley does not look markedly different to the player we saw David Moyes introduce to the side. The poor decision making is still as prevalent as ever and, despite being a regular in the ‘No.10’ berth, he does not look to have the eye for a pass that others of his age and talent do.
Now, Stones. John Stones was boy wonder last summer and he started this season in pretty decent form, too. However, since the start of 2016 it has gone horribly wrong for the centre-back. He lost form, and his place to Ramiro Funes-Mori, whilst high-profile mistakes are more common than vine-worthy cross-field passes at the moment. Even in the FA Cup semi-final Stones was guilty of allowing Anthony Martial to run off him for the late winner. Although an initial beneficiary of Martinez’s centre-back splitting and pass-out philosophy, Stones is now in the spotlight, and it is not reflecting positively.
However, any big club, for all the disappointments around these three, would still take them in a second. All three of these international starlets will be 23 by the time the summer transfer window starts and, although Everton may not raise as much money as they would have last summer, it is the perfect time for them to move. Goodison Park will probably riot if all three were to leave in one window, mind.
With the right coaching Lukaku can still develop into of the best strikers in world football, Barkley can become a midfielder to compete with the very best of this era and Stones can develop into a centre-back ready to play total football.
Everton, I fear, is not the place for any of these three any more. Admittedly, that could change with a different regime, but each of these players must be wondering whether it is time for them to make a move. The Toffees should be looking more like Tottenham than Bournemouth right now, but their concerning footballing trajectory is enough to make the best players wonder why they are there. Barkley’s club affiliations would quickly be dropped with the temptation of European football, you’d imagine, and Lukaku has never kept quiet about his own ambitions.
There could be several Everton heavyweights overboard by the end of summer.
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