Martinez: Deulofeu is developing into a world class talent
Everton manager Roberto Martinez has hailed on-loan Barcelona winger Gerard Deulofeu and has said that he should stay next season and keep developing into a world class player.
Deulofeu’s loan ends at the end of the season and the Spanish manager is keen for Deulofeu to stay to keep building on a promising season in which he has delighted and excited blues fans.
He said: “He would carry on developing here. Also Gerard is such a different player we would benefit from having him another season too, of course.
“But I’m not worried about it. We knew initially we only had him for a season to see how he develops.
“To have him for this season has given us a lot so far, and I want to see the best of him now. At the end of the season, as I’ve said, we’ll all sit down and see if it’s been a successful relationship.
“I’m delighted with his attitude and the respect he’s shown in changing to the demanding league. It shows maturity beyond his years.”
Speaking about Gerard’s learning curve, Martinez finds the whole thing exciting. Deulofeu has adapted to an exciting winger into a team player who brings excitement to the Everton supporters.
“Gerry’s adaptation to the game over here has been fascinating,” he said.
“He worked really hard to change the way he plays from how he did in Spain.
“He comes from the hardest team in the world to go out on loan from, because his parent club plays in a very specific way that only they can.
“He had to adapt to the physicality here and then when we felt he was ready he picked up an injury which kept him out for eight weeks.
“He’s growing back to that level now.
“On Tuesday we saw he was physically ready and is starting to become unpredictable with his unpredictability; in the one versus one situations, making the decisions when to use a trick and when not to.
“He’s developing into a world class talent.”
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