I like Martinez. I have backed him and defended him in face of overwhelming negativity and criticism in the past, some of which was admittedly deserved.
I think some of what he tried to do, some of his ideas for the future, his vision for the club as a whole and not just on a game by game basis for the 1st team, is exactly what we should have been striving for. But it was too much to try to implement in 1 go, on his own, with no financial backing, as was the situation when he was here.
The ambition was admirable but we are collectively a very impatient set of supporters, not helped by years of failure to achieve the heights of the past. It would've taken a long time to get to a point that his ideas would benefit us, and we were struggling because it was drastic change from where we where when he took over.
People criticise Martinez and take away all the credit he deserved because of some of the mistakes he made as well, rather than trying to find the balance between the 2. They wrongly credit his 1st season solely down to Moyes, while not also considering that the core squad and principles Moyes left us with actually remained the season after as well, and also, that at the point of Moyes leaving, the squad was once again on the cusp of another expensive and painstaking rebuild that would've taken years and cost us a lot of money as the transfer fees boomed. By the time Martinez had left after 3 years, only 5 or 6 of Moyes squad had not retired or moved on, on a couple of them had seen better days as well.
But despite all of this, and as much as I liked and admired Martinez for what he did manage to achieve coupled with his long term vision he had for the club, I think it would be the wrong appointment at this time. There is too much bitterness and bad blood, not to mention, the weaknesses in the current side are not what we would expect Martinez to be able to fix overnight.
What we need now is togetherness, solidity, passion and fight. A bit of organisation added to this side could make a huge difference, and still allow to score goals with some of the players we already have.
I would say though, that the idea of Martinez and his vision, could make an interesting shout for a future DOF, if he would consider such a role. I think he had a genuine connection with the club, he had good ideas about the future and the structure of how we should be set up, including changes to youth set up, and innovative plans for Finch Farm expansions. And overall, his vision for creating a system that focuses on teams that grow up playing football through the ranks is something we should aspire to. If done properly and with the right backing and coaching, I think it would be a great move.
But that is obviously a different question for a different day. Right now, we need instant results, and as much as I like him, in our current predicament, it's a hard no from me.
