Martinez: Financially we are in a strong position
Everton manager Roberto Martinez has said that Europe has to be the aim for the club each season, even with the extra pressures if puts on your league form
The Spaniard also says that the club are now financially in a strong position and are no longer viewed by the media as a selling club and because of this it means he can make better footballing decisions.
“In terms of our aspiration, absolutely,” Martinez said, when asked about the importance of regularly qualifying for Europe.
“Our work last season was to make sure that we were busy this season with the amount of games because we want to be in Europe and we want the expectations that we have to win games.
“We are starting to get into a position where we are strong as a team and are looking at every game as an opportunity to win.
“You have to be a strong football club to cope with those demands.
“When you are consistently in Europe you are a team that can make better football decisions.
“You have certain targets that allow you to develop as a football club and staying in Europe is what we need at Everton.
“To reach our goals you need challenges to push you and Europe is what we need.”
Martinez believes that Everton are no longer perceived to be a selling club by the media
“It has changed,” he said
“Financially we are on a very strong footing.
“I’ve always said that in football it’s not about how much money you have but how little money you need to run the football club.
“When I say that, I mean we don’t need to sell players to get the club close in every season and that is a big strength.
“Now we are in a strong financial position it means any decision that is made about players is a football decision.
“That doesn’t mean we aren’t going to sell or buy players, it means the decision will be based on football and not finances and that is a real strength to have.
“We have such a talented Academy and we can produce our own talent through the first team. We are not a club that needs to sell to survive and that’s a big strength.”
Asked about how his thoughts differ in Europe Martinez says that he tailors the way he thinks
“The biggest difference is the approach from a tactical point of view,” Martinez said.
“The game is played in a different way abroad and when you face French sides or Russian sides it’s completely different.
“You get a good bit of variety. But we try to prepare for games from our point of view and I think it’s how we’ve adapted towards that, I think we’ve done well in that so far.”
“We really enjoyed our last game at Goodison against Wolfsburg,” the manager added.
“The two away games have been phenomenal experiences but the idea of playing at Goodison under the floodlights and facing French opposition for the first time in our history is really exciting.
“In the last two home games in the Premier League we had sell-out crowds, so you can imagine there is a real buzz around Goodison when we play our football.
“We really look forward to our home games, especially now we know the group inside out. We are looking to make our home an advantage.”
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