Beyond the fridge full of Spanish ham in his office, the enduring memory of an hour or so in the company of Roberto Martinez this time last year was the clarity of his thought and the freshness of his ideas.
Even when it came to his diet, he appeared to have a unique recipe for success. He would eat carbohydrates in the evening to fuel the brain because he liked to do much of his thinking at night. But he would eat nothing immediately before a game because he wanted the blood in his brain rather than in his stomach when providing direction from the technical area.
It was an interview from which you emerged feeling educated. You could see, 22 Premier League games into his tenure at Everton, why his side were reflecting on just two defeats. His attention to detail, even in this era of a more scientific approach to sport, was impressive.
Staff at the club’s Finch Farm training ground appeared to be in awe of their Catalan leader. Understandably, they had been unsettled by the departure of David Moyes but Martinez had made the transition easier than they had perhaps feared, employing charm, charisma and drive to get everyone, from the star players to the secretaries, buying into his regime.
Today, the majority of players at Everton continue to like Martinez’s style as manager. One senior dressing room source described him this week as a ‘courageous, tactically astute coach’ who encourages them to fear no-one. They have found his approach to the bigger games particularly refreshing. Martinez sends them out to play with ambition rather than inhibition.
But something has changed for the worse in Martinez’s second season in charge, as nine defeats in their first 22 games demonstrated prior to a much-needed victory at Crystal Palace last weekend
There is a danger they are turning into his Wigan team,’ said another qualified observer, and while that might seem harsh, the 34 league goals they have so far conceded amounts to the joint-fifth worst defensive record in the top flight.
This week Martinez shared his thoughts on why, pointing to the additional burden of European football and the number of injuries. ‘Remember we had a player in Leon Osman last season who played in every game,’ he said before also pointing to the absence of Steven Pienaar and James McCarthy, among others.
Some point to a deeper problem, however: to the impact the departure of certain staff has had on dressing room, and club, morale.
In that same interview last year, Martinez said ‘he wanted to change things without losing anything’ in recognition of the club Moyes had so successfully created.
But some changes have been regarded by some as heavy losses. Danny Donachie resigned as head of medicine in December, while conditioning coach Steve Tashjian left in the summer and another fitness coach, Dave Billows, before that.
There is nothing new in a manager bringing in his own staff but these three particular members of the backroom staff were regarded by many as the oil in the machine. ‘They were very popular with the players, and trusted,’ said one dressing room source. ‘They would keep the ship sailing.’
A physiotherapist who had been at Goodison Park for more than a decade, Donachie is the son of former assistant manager Willie and regarded as something of an innovator when it comes to the management of injuries. But it seems he may have clashed with Martinez, himself a qualified physiotherapist, over the treatment of injuries, which may have led to his departure.
Donachie alluded to as much in an interview he gave to a professional publication last season.
‘It’s not inconceivable to find yourself in a position where the athlete and the coaching staff are desperate to play in the next game and you know it’s not in their best interest,’ said Donachie. ‘This is when your communication skills come into play, by convincing the management it is the best thing for the player and hence the team and explain and cajole the player into preparing for the more sensible option.’ Donachie is currently on gardening leave but is sure to be in demand.
Much has been made of Everton’s injury record since Martinez took charge, in particular the 18 hamstring injuries in his first 18 months in charge.
Sportsmail examined the club’s injury record in more detail and can report that in Martinez’s 20 months in charge there have been 105 injuries, 85 of them to key players. Compare that to the last 20 months of Moyes’s tenure: 93 injuries with 60 to key players. Not a huge difference, but a rise all the same.
One reason being given is ‘too much ball work’ which probably demands medical expertise to explain but appears to suggest Martinez believes in certain training methods that place the body under more stress than it is used to
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