ROBERTO MARTINEZ believes new signing Joel Robles is already demonstrating he can provide genuine competition for Tim Howard as Everton goalkeeper.
Robles, signed earlier this month from Atletico Madrid, made his first appearance for his new club in Sunday’s 2-1 friendly defeat against Austria Vienna.
Martinez signed the 23-year-old on loan last season for Wigan Athletic, with Robles displacing Ali Al-Habsi as first-choice keeper and playing the full 90 minutes of the Latics’ FA Cup final win over Manchester City.
And the Everton manager is confident his fellow Spaniard can put greater pressure on Howard’s regular starting role than previous goalkeepers on the club’s books.
“Joel is a very confident man and I thought he performed (against Austria Vienna) like a player who has been at Everton for years,” said Martinez.
“Probably that’s the biggest strength that he has – he’s got a real mental strength and a maturity and I’m sure the fans enjoyed what they saw of him.”
Howard, who has been on extended summer break due to international commitments, returns to training this week, with Everton’s next friendly scheduled at Blackburn Rovers on Saturday week.
Arouna Kone, Seamus Coleman, Nikica Jelavic and John Heitinga are also back from their extended rests with Martinez now working with a full squad.
With the Everton manager having bolstered his defensive options with the signing of Paraguay international centre-back Antolin Alcaraz from former club Wigan, speculation has resurfaced regarding the future of John Heitinga.
The Dutchman, who fell behind Phil Jagielka and Sylvain Distin in the pecking order for much of last season, is attracting interest from Turkey with both Fenerbahce and Besiktas monitoring developments.
However, neither is able to offer European football as a lure after both clubs this week failed to have bans overturned after being kicked out by UEFA as a result of match-fixing allegations.
Meanwhile, Neil Dewsnip has left his position as head coach of Everton’s Academy to take up a role with the Football Association.
Dewsnip, who had been working under Academy manager Alan Irvine at Finch Farm, will become technical lead for the 17-21 age group at the new national training centre at St George’s Park. Dewsnip is one of several appointments made by Dan Ashworth, the FA’s Head of Elite Development.
Southampton’s Matthew Crocker has been appointed to the role of Head of Coach and Player Development while Dan Micciche has joined from MK Dons to take the post of 12-16 technical lead.
“It has long been said that St George’s Park will only ever be as good as the people that will work here, making a difference to English football,” said Ashworth. “That is true and these appointments underline this.
“I’m genuinely excited by the appointment of Neil, Matthew and Dan. They each bring a wealth of experience with them, but just as importantly they are innovators and are absolutely grounded in young player development.
“They are respected in the professional game and as we continue to develop our relationships all three will be vitally important.”
