Martinez prepares for 'defining week'

So close the door on your way out Bobby.

Now is all about action and making things happen and PLAYING a good game not just TALKING one.

Huge week, defining for many players and the manager to salvage pride otherwise the damage could be irreversible after these two matches, at least in terms of supporters forgiveness.

Martinez knows his job is hanging by a thread and in his mind I think he believes if he can win the cup his job is safe. I don't know what he would say if we lose against Man Utd, surely even doctor spin won't find anything positive to say.

Playing the other lot 3 days before a semi final isn't ideal but it is what it is. We need a positive result on Wednesday otherwise its off to Wembley with no win in the last six... or is it more.

Everyday, switching regularly to the sports news to see if he has been sacked, such is my frustration.

Do something that barely any of the fans think we are capable of and get two shock results rather than the same old predictable outcome followed by the same boring lame excuses.

We must be the only club in the Premier League that has no surprise element anymore. We fail to win the games we always fail to win and fail on the biggest occasion time after time.

Just for once do something out of the ordinary, be different for once and win against the odds.

That line sums us up perfectly mate.

"Get two shock results"

Shouldn't be that way, should it?

It's a measure of the level we are at now and it's a sad sorry state of affairs but I feel I have no chance of seeing a good Everton performance at Anfield let alone a win and we all expect the hard luck story at Wembley.

Wining games
Holding onto leads
Decent football
Not being treated like idiots
2 wingers every now and then
A good old fashioned clearance into row z instead of pissing about with Cruyff turns in your own box
Never hearing the word phenomenal again

Couldn't care less about local bragging rights.

No derby is pointless mate!!

We have an embarrassing record against that lot, the kind of record Leyton Orient would have against Arsenal.

Are you seriously happy for that to continue??

I think the very least we can ask for is two big performances from the players considering they have barely turned up since the glamorous break in Dubai they had.

It could be my own opinion but I just don't see how losing the derby helps confidence going into Wembley on Saturday.

Defeat at Anfield will just throw another coal in the fire and serve to cast more self-doubt and unrest amongst fans and players.

Not sure how many times I've been to Anfield, will be well over 30 times though, and I've seen us win twice!!

No point in risking injury to anymore key players is there. Looks like we've already lost jags and Coleman for Saturday. You can bet your bottom dollar them bastards will try and nobble the likes of Barkley and Lukaku on Wednesday.

I would play the U21s on Wednesday and keep all our Wembley squad away from that shit hole. Klopp made ten changes yesterday and still won. Why can't we?

Two chances of it actually happening of course.

I don't get this bollocks the Derby isn't important, it's fucking important to me and my fifty two quid ticket! Also, why should the players get a "pass" for this game of all games just because we play again on the Saturday, half of them have done fuck all this season, they fucking owe us these two games.

'As a manager', 'as a football club', 'as a football player', as a 'human being as a manager of a football club', 'as a player of a football club' – cut out the patronising shite!

The only ones enjoying our football now is the opposition!

It's not the shite we've been watching all season.

I was all for resting a few but I don't really give a shit now. The players that we'd want to rest are fuckin rubbish anyway.

Perhaps Hibbert at right back might be a good thing as we know he will pull his tripe out which is what some players have not been doing. Young players like Deulofeu and Barkley have been going backwards for a while and not contributing as we would have expected and I think this is part of the Martinez malaise.

So often when in good possession and space they both make wrong decisions far too often which turns the ball over to the opponents. What has RM done about this? Apparently nothing as it keeps happening.

Some of our players look knackered after 60/70 minutes. If we play a full strength side on Wednesday, there's no doubt we'll pay for it on Saturday on a typical draining Wembley pitch, and then there's the possibility of extra time.

In an ideal world, we'd play a full side at Anfield, win, and then go to the Semi-Final full of confidence, but this is Everton and we don't live in an ideal world.

With so many injuries to defenders, if the likes of Stones or Funes Mori got injured in the derby then we truly are fucked for Saturday. And with only one decent striker, you can add Lukaku to that list.

• Providing an HONEST assessment of the teams inability to continually pick up 3 points after each game via interview.

• Treating all players with the same respect ie punishing Rom and getting him to apologise and publicly advising all of what you've done rather than singling out certain individuals for your shocking treatment.

• Making the subs yourself rather than your assistant and preferably the correct ones before 70 mins would be a bonus too.

• From time to time getting a little nasty with certain individuals via a half time rollicking rather than being Mr Nice continually to send them out second half only to get the same performance from them.

Actually I could go on and on but my fingers typing this are almost as tired as me watching us capitulate week on week. Let's just hope we can pull off to minor miracles and actually perform this week to raise a well needed smile to our faces.

ps: Note to Bill – Irrespective of this weeks results this fraud we call our manager has to go come the end of the season (that's with winning the cup too IMO).

Meanwhile inside.......

We couldn't beat them last time when Brenda was still in charge, Mignolet was playing shockers, and we had Naismith rolling Chelsea over.

I hate this.

Just edited this to say Patrick # 31 very funny mate and its hard to laugh these days, well in.

I would love to have the surprise week that we as supporters deserve but I'm afraid that holding my breath for it could cause some serious damage to my health. I will always be an Everton and would love to put one over the RS. The only wish is that if it goes pear-shaped Martinez goes without any hesitation.

McGeady was injured at the weekend but keep your eyes open anyway.

Winding the team up, 0/10.

For me, the derby should never be forfeited. I don't care how many times we've been beat there, it hurts just as much everytime. Do you think the RS would ever throw a derby? Absolutely not and neither should we.

Reading the posts on here its no wonder we are viewed as a small club by that lot. They have pride, we seem to have lost ours a good while ago. We should be trying to win every game in my opinion. Instead we have had an awful run up to the derby and if we cave in at the khazi across the park then that's hardly grounds for optimism going into the semi.

We are just a joke at the moment. Never thought I'd hear our own fans say they don't care about the derby. Martinez's destruction job is just about complete.

I am dreading both games this week but I shall be hoping against hope we go all out to win both. Anything less and the team are just cheating the loyal fans... bit like they have been doing for the last 2 years really but its about time they gave something back.

Whenever I have watched the blues this season there are always huge gaps at the back, quality players will exploit this quite easily.

Being brutally honest it's hard to see us winning either of these games with such a big handicap, we would have to get lucky........... twice! I think most of us would settle for just once, preferably on Saturday.

These two games should be his defining moment. If we win both then we lay off him for a bit, but if we lose both he hands his notice in.

If, as is being suggested, he is going to be given another season and some money to spend, then let's hope he buys some players ready for when we are in the Championship.

"Small" and smaller is what Martinez has done to us and it will get way worse if he's allowed to remain.

It pains me to say it but Klopp has shown him up as the charlatan he is and, in most people's opinion, except Blue Bill's of course, always was.

After only six months Klopp's well on the way to transforming a squad of mainly moderate players into fit, passionate winners and I expect they'll be better next season as well.

He came to them with the pedigree of a proven serial winner of league games and I hope and pray Mr Moshiri finds someone even better for his/our beloved club.

For the first time in my "career" as being a Toffee, that belief is gone. Goodison is a horrible place to be at the moment – sitting in virtual silence with nothing but the sound of the away fans. The odd groan or roar of disapproval as yet another pass goes astray, or a loss of possession leaves us wide open for the counter. The brief moment of belief as a goal gets banged in that "this is it, the turning point" – only to be torn away minutes later when the inevitable capitulation happens. The boos as the team leave the pitch after yet another dismal performance. And through all this, our illustrious manager stands on the touchline and just watches it unfold.

I actually dread going to the match now, I know what's going to happen, I know the atmosphere is going to be shite. But I'm a blue, so I have to grin and bear it.

What Martinez has done to this club, it's fans, it's players is nothing short of a demolition job. And through it all, BK just smiles and – as if to add insult to injury – THAT quote... "What a manager"!

I actually considered letting the season ticket lapse – why would I want to go through the same old crap every fortnight? Well, because I'm a Blue.

I hate the fact that I dread going the match, I hate that I'm sat there surrounded by other blues groaning, holding their heads in their hands, roaring at the players, booing them off. It shouldn't be that way, and it's all down to the incompetence of one man and his coaching staff.

I read the stories about the apparent quotes of Kenwright and Moshiri on the train to London about Martinez' job being "safe" – I sure hope to god that isn't true. The players are lost, the fans are lost. –The only logical conclusion to all this is a relegation fight next season – and we all know how well that went last time for Señor Martinez.

I don't give a toss about the derby – I can sense a total humiliation in the offing from the way we've been playing this season. I am focussed on the Semi – a must win. Chins up Blues – it can only get better from here can't it???

The derby is our cup final.

In my eyes, the semi is now the most important game of Roberto's reign, but to call this week a defining week is crazy.

Stupid daft Spanish balloon head needs to quit now.

Our players have hardly run up a sweat this season, so I'm sure 2 games of giving their all to justify their obscene wages won't kill them.

And I agree for once with Roberto: this will be defining week, possibly culminating in him visiting the Job Centre.

Some great and funny posts, Some rather sad posts by loyal fans.

So just who are these key players, that we should be resting tomorrow and saving them for the semi. Not a single one them have performed anywhere near what they should be doing since the Chelsea game.

Klopp is preparing his team to give us a good beating. This will ensure we still have our inferiority complex for next season so they can get 6 points off us.

I predict that we will get relegated if Martinez is still the manager and Liverpool will either come close to winning the league or at least make top 4.

I am no dreamer and not hopeful of a miracle; I simply can not see us winning either game. Or, for that matter, the last few games of this season.

John Aldridge, why do you punish yourself knowing it's not going to change. Just because your a blue, Kenwright relies on people like you to blindly hope things will all come good.

I live in Australia now, but there is no way I would waste my time and money to watch Everton for another game while Martinez is manager.

But all things considered we can only live for the day.... whatever it brings!

We're still bleeding goals at the back and the forwards, to a man, have run out of ideas.

Nobody, not the players, not the fans, not even the manager, is "enjoying" the football this season.

Earlier in the year, I looked forward to each match, no matter who we played, with cautious optimism. If we played well, we could beat anyone. Now,with our present form, I'm not sure we'll even get another point, much less win the derby and long overdue silverware.

I don't care if the players enjoy the game while they're playing; the enjoyment can come after they win it.

Cautious optimism has been replaced by nervous pessimism.

It's strange but some of them actually still think he's a decent manager and I think this is also true of a large number of journalists who have allowed themselves to be hoodwinked by his inane psychobabble. I think this applies especially to the London based media who view Everton as a provincial club who are probably lucky to have a manager as urbane. forward thinking and sophisticated as Roberto.

Finally, one of my mates asked me what it was like being an Evertonian at the moment. I gave him a one word reply – EXHAUSTING.

If all we need is great players then why do the galacticos of Real Madrid not sweep all before them

For example, last week I was bored (c'mon you've all done it), and typed into Google the words 'massive tits'. Imagine my surprise then when it gave me a link to Everton.com official website and a picture of Kenwright and Martinez

It isn't our Cup Final, though the reds would love us to fall for that one, while they pretend the games against the Mancs are their derbies. It's one of (if not the) oldest derbies in England and as long as there are Derby matches, we'll want to win them

I can stand getting beat (just) but getting humiliated is what I fear because what that will do to the players for Saturday. So I hope we can put together a battling display and that out players can come away from there, proud.

Anyway, as I was wandering through Stanley Park before, I noticed that a new footpath is being built from the Car Park (by the looks of it,) right up to Anfield Road. They have chopped loads of nice trees down all round the perimeter (with the promise that they'll plant others!

Well, to me it looks disturbingly like a processional way leading to Mordor...and using our bloody park to make a shrine of that place! Hope I'm wrong. Anyway, that's an aside but it looks like the Council have given them the Park after all... bastards!

At least we might get a plaque in the theme park. Just to let people know there is another club in the City...