Martinez happy with Everton squad
Manager Roberto Martinez is pleased with Everton's business in the summer transfer window.
|||Manager Roberto Martinez is pleased with Everton's business in the summer transfer window and said the Premier League club have ensured they will maintain continuity at Goodison Park.
The Toffees brought in seven players, including the deadline-day signings of centre-half Ramiro Funes Mori from River Plate and Aaron Lennon from Tottenham Hotspur.
They also signed Tom Cleverly, Gerard Deulofeu, David Henen, Mason Holgate and Leandro Rodriguez, but probably the club's best piece of business was resisting three bids from Chelsea for England defender John Stones.
Martinez had earlier declared his intention to sign another striker but the club were left frustrated in their attempts to bring in Andriy Yarmolenko from current Ukrainian champions Dynamo Kiev, according to British media reports.
However, the manager said he was happy with the players at his disposal and stressed the importance of being able to hold on to his key performers.
“I feel really pleased about the way in which our business during this transfer window will allow us to carry on with the continuity in our squad and develop some of our young talent while adding some outstanding characters,” the Spaniard told the club website (www.evertonfc.com).
“Keeping the main performers of the team that attempted that fourth-place finish in the Premier League two seasons ago and shared in some incredible memories in Europe last season will help us to integrate all of our new signings and to carry on reaching better levels of performance on a consistent basis.
“Four full senior internationals for England, Argentina and Spain reflect the huge calibre of players we have been able to bring in, with some of those - Gerard Deulofeu and Aaron Lennon - already knowing our dressing room and our home,” the 42-year-old added.
“They represent a guarantee in terms of settling in well to our club and adding to our squad.” – Reuters