Roberto Martinez appoints backroom staff at Everton

Roberto Martinez has appointed Graeme Jones (pictured above with Martinez) as part of his new backroom staff at Goodison Park

Everton boss Roberto Martinez has now appointed his backroom staff.

The Spaniard had big gaps to fill with the likes of Steve Round, Jimmy Lumsden, Chris Woods, and David Weir all leaving the Everton coaching staff this summer for pastures new.

The former three have joined former-boss David Moyes at Manchester United, while Weir has moved into his first managerial venture as League One Sheffield United’s new boss.

New

The new additions to Everton’s coaching staff are people that Martinez’s knows well from his Swansea and most recently his Wigan days.

Graeme Jones will be first team coach, while Inaki Bergara will be goalkeeping coach replacing the departed Chris Woods.

Kevin Reeves will reprise the role he had at Wigan as chief scout and Richard Evans will be the head of performance (sorry did not even know that was a job).

It was always likely that Martinez was going to bring in people he has worked with before, just as Moyes did when he headed to Manchester United.

Relegated

All the backroom staff appointed worked with the Wigan team that were relegated last season. That is not exactly a glowing thing to have on your CV, ‘Worked at Wigan in the first season they ever got relegated’.

Fans

Many Everton fans were concerned about the appointment of Martinez because of Wigan’s relegation last season. These appointments have not exactly eased their concerns. None of the appointed staff is well known to the Everton fans, but then again how many backroom staff is well known, unless they are former-high profile players.

It is difficult for Everton fans to accept the fact that the exact same staff that got Wigan relegated last season is going to be guiding their team next season.

Quality

The one thing that will be reassuring Everton fans now is that the players at their club are better quality than the ones from Wigan. The Toffees may lose some of their better quality players this summer, but as of yet the likes of Marouane Fellaini and Leighton Baines are still at the club.

With the quality of players at Goodison, I believe it is very unlikely that the Toffees will suddenly become a team threatened by relegation.

Surely not even the worse backroom staff (not that I am saying the new arrivals are the worst backroom staff) could turn a bunch of very good players into poor players in one season? Although stranger things have happened, I cannot see it happening at Everton.

Signings

Everton are being heavily linked with a £5million move for Wigan striker Arouna Kone and former-Latics defender Antolin Alcaraz. I do not think they would be bad signings for the Blues. However surely Martinez should cast his net a bit further afield than his old club.

The Spaniard made some very shrewd signings at Wigan. Evertonian’s biggest concern is that the Toffees will end up with half the Wigan team and lose their two star players.

Martinez has already revealed that he is being very careful about the sort of player that he is attempting to bring to Goodison. Hopefully he can somehow strengthen the Everton squad ahead of the new season.

Pleasant

There seems to be a lot of negativity around Everton at the moment. The appointment of Martinez was not exactly a universally popular one. However, as always Evertonian’s will get behind the club and team.

Who knows maybe Roberto Martinez will pleasantly surprise Everton fans with his performance as Toffees boss. He will have to have a good start to the season though, or the fans that did not want him appointed will make themselves heard very clearly.

Martinez has a difficult job on his hands moving Everton forward and it does not seem like Toffees fans think he has made a very good start. I hope that as the summer progresses that Martinez starts to inspire slightly more confidence in the Everton fans.

If he does not then the Spaniard could be in for a very difficult time when the season starts and his love affair with Everton could end up more like a one-night stand.

Does Roberto Martinez inspire confidence?