A controversial opinion, I know, but the amount of hatred directed at our beleaguered manager has gone too far in this Evertonian’s opinion!

When we appointed a manager in the summer of 2013 who had just presided over the long overdue relegation of Wigan Athletic, I was one of many who wasn’t convinced by the appointment. I was also one of many won over by the cocktail of exciting football and exciting results secured by the new look Everton in the twelve months that followed.

I still remember watching us destroy Arsenal at Goodison with Naismith, Lukaku and Mirallas (though it went down as an Arteta OG) firing us to a 3-0 success. The third goal in particular typified what we were all about for most of that season. Kev chased back, won the ball from their full back and we cut through them like a knife through butter for the umpteenth time that afternoon.

Sadly, the chase for that top four spot petered out after that performance, and after two disappointing seasons, it has become clear that Roberto Martinez is not the man to get us back up there.

I stand alongside the 99% of our fanbase in believing that we need a new manager, but I won’t let our poor performances cloud my overall judgement of Roberto. He’s a good bloke, he has represented Everton Football Club admirably off the pitch and built a real affinity with the club and what we stand for – his embrace with one of the Hillsborough family members ahead of the Bournemouth game last weekend was heart-warming. While he’s seemingly a million miles away from delivering on his promise of propelling us into the Champions League, I don’t feel right using this promise as another stick to beat him with. After a decade of Moyes’ “knife to a gunfight” attitude, it was absolutely the right thing for him to come in and make a statement, the right statement, that Everton are a big club and that’s what we should be aiming for next.

The only problem is, he’s not a good enough manager to deliver on that promise. He’s tried his best, and he’s failed. These things happen in football. These things happen to everyone at one time or another. We can make a number of absolutely fair criticisms about his reign – he has been too stubborn, and he has failed to address the weaknesses in our team that have been apparent for the best part of two seasons. He has been far too generous in some of his post match interviews, and simply hasn’t done enough to rectify the poor performances of some individuals.

It is absolutely fair enough to respond to poor performances with dissatisfaction. I was one of the last to give up on Everton becoming a successful side under Roberto Martinez, but, as I mentioned, I am firmly of the belief that we need a new man at the helm to take us forward into a new era. What I can’t agree with, though, is the amount of hatred and personal abuse the manager has received in recent weeks and months.

At the end of the day, it isn’t actually Roberto’s fault that he is still in charge of the club. As far as I’m concerned, this is still his job and as far as I can see, he’s still trying his best. The problem is that it shouldn’t still be his job, and hopefully won’t be when the new season gets underway in August. The responsibility for this, though, lies with the board.

After the heavy loss at Anfield and the gutting defeat to Man Utd at Wembley, there was no reason to keep Roberto in charge. At this stage, the board had to do one of three things, and one of those three things has to happen as soon as it possibly can:

The board need to sack the manager, even if they announce that he is leaving by mutual consent. I don’t usually agree with changing managers mid-season but after the FA Cup semi final, mid-season was gone for us, the season was finished. With a David Unsworth or other viable interim gaffer in charge, the transition into a new era could have begun, we could see some changes in the way we play and possibly a few of the under 21s given more game time, without it really mattering if it went tits up. The fans could get behind the team again without growing increasingly frustrated at the inaction from the boardroom. The board need to announce that Roberto Martinez will be relieved of his duties at the end of the season. Again, this would demonstrate that the board are actually doing something about the underachievement of our football club, allowing everyone to look forward to next season and get behind the team for the last few games, hopefully even give Roberto a respectful send off, along with Tim Howard and other likely departees (Hibbert, Osman, Pienaar) in the remaining games. If indeed, the board does, for some reason, want to give the manager more time, they need to make that clear to the fans. This wouldn’t be a popular decision but at least it shows that there’s a plan, rather than allowing the growing frustration with the board’s ongoing apathy to continue generating the increasingly negative atmosphere around the club.

Roberto needs to go, and I remain 99% certain that he will be relieved of his duties within the next 2-3 weeks. However, I urge my fellow Blues to cease with the personal abuse towards a man who has embraced the club’s values and tried his best to deliver success, even if he has ultimately fallen woefully short of doing so. If you need to direct your ire anywhere, do so at the people upstairs, as they are currently the ones who have the power, and the responsibility, to steer the club back in the right direction.