A club spokesman insisted a decision has not yet been reached on the future of the Spaniard and stressed that no training session was scheduled after Wednesday night’s defeat at Sunderland.
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Roberto Martinez is on the verge of losing his job at Everton and could leave before the final game of the season, sources close to the club have told ESPN FC.
Supporters’ groups are planning a protest at St George’s Hall in Liverpool, where players and officials will gather on Thursday evening. But his failure to replicate the achievements of that first season resulted in many fans calling for him to be sacked.
The only potential sticking point is that Martinez still has three years left on a lucrative contract, worth a reported £4m a year, that he signed in the summer of 2014.
Frank de Boer is the bookies’ favourite to take the reins at Goodison Park after leaving Ajax earlier on Thursday, with his agent Guido Albers recently saying: “He would love to join a club like Everton or Valencia”. Mark Hughes, Manuel Pellegrini, Ronald Koeman and Rafa Benitez are also in the running according to bookmakers.
Everton’s final game of the season is at home to Norwich.
Talks were held this morning among Everton hierarchy including new investor Farhad Moshiri about the manager’s future.
They have won only five league matches at Goodison Park, with two of those coming against relegated Aston Villa and Newcastle United.
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It’s a far cry from Martinez’s debut season at Goodison Park in 2013/14, when he almost steered Everton to Champions League qualification.
