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From boys to men

Roberto Martinez eager to change Everton's development strategy

Chief Executive Robert Elstone, speaking at a Liverpool Business Week breakfast yesterday, explained Roberto Martinez's mission to turn promising teenagers in the Everton Academy into accomplished first teamers.

“Clearly our Academy graduates are very very important,” he said.“Roberto has come in and probably one of the first things he has looked at is the transition between 16/17 years of age when players are almost leaving the Academy up to 21 and 22. He feels that we have improvements to make in that age group.

“In this country, at an age when development ought to be at its most intense and at its most valuable, we almost stop developing. Players go from the Academy into reserve or Under-21 football and the development plan stops.

“Roberto has already started to look at coaching and structures and how we go about looking at that very important age group.

“It's not an area of expertise for me, but our head of Youth Development Alan Irvine and Roberto will tell you that at a point when a player is on the cusp of professional football it seems rather perverse to slow down their development. We should be accelerating and intensifying it at a time when technical development is still really, really important. We certainly can't assume that a boy has reached his technical development by the time he reaches 17 or 18.”

“Sometimes maybe the focus is on converting a young lad into being a tough, winning Premier League footballer to the detriment of maybe some of his technical development. What you have to achieve is a blend of both.

“Roberto's going to focus closely on that. And he's got a great, great guy leading that in Alan Irvine and that augurs well for us getting that right.”

He explained the impact the new boss has already had: “He's hit the ground running, is full of enthusiasm, has a great work ethic, but above else has come in with new ideas, a fresh approach — but absolutely sensitive to what's already there because there's already a lot of good stuff here which has been built up over a number of years.

“But he's been terrific and we're all excited and optimistic. He never stops working and he's a very nice man. So it augurs well.

“We know this is a results game and Roberto has been absolutely phenomenal in the very short space of time he has been with us and we are all very optimistic for what lies ahead.”

Quotes or other material sourced from Liverpool Echo

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