Everton’s Roberto Martínez not worried about Ross Barkley losing the ball

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/jan/16/everton-roberto-martinez-ross-barkley

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Roberto Martínez claims he has no problem with Ross Barkley losing possession but believes Everton must learn to capitalise on the extra attention afforded the England international.

Barkley has had an underwhelming campaign at Goodison Park so far, although has been regularly played out of position, and endured another frustrating night as Everton exited the FA Cup in a third-round replay at West Ham United on Tuesday. The 21-year-old was replaced by Bryan Oviedo in the 67th minute at Upton Park with Everton a man and a goal down to Sam Allardyce’s team.

Martínez believes Barkley’s problems stem from opponents doubling up on the gifted midfielder following his breakthrough season last year. He insists Barkley’s occasional carelessness on the ball will be tolerated and it is the team’s responsibility to profit from the space created by the focus on one player.

The Everton manager explained: “Ross will maybe lose the ball three times and he’ll want it again. On the fourth time he’ll go past three players and give you an assist or a goal. That’s a sign of a player who’ll find a way. He’s got the top personality. You get a player who loses the ball a couple of times and they hide. That’s when you’ve got a real issue.

“With Ross Barkley, last season he was just a young man enjoying his football. Now he’s Ross Barkley and the opposition pay him extra attention. I’m not concerned about him getting that attention, I’m concerned with what we do with the extra space that should be created when he is marked by two men.

“It is a bit of a learning curve for us as a team, how to utilise that, and for him because I have been playing him in different positions, bombarding him with information to grow quickly. I am delighted with his performances, it is not about missing a pass or making a wrong decision – he is always there.”

Everton are not in a position to take risks following a run of one win in 12 matches that has left Martínez’s team three points above the relegation zone and out of the FA Cup at the first hurdle. The England manager, Roy Hodgson, has rebuked Barkley for conceding possession but Martínez believes too much attention is paid to the midfielder’s limitations rather than his attributes.

“Ross doesn’t need to be having a great game to give you something and I will never have a problem with someone like that,” Martínez added. “You need to understand why he is giving away possession. Maybe he’s trying things too risky when he’s already got two players there. If there are two players there, then we will have a player somewhere else on his own. That is where we need to learn to use it to our advantage.

“With Ross Barkley, in assessing his performance I don’t look at what is wrong or what is missing, I see the opposite at what he can bring, what action he can produce that is unexpected. As a team we need to be prepared for that. I don’t see it as a negative at all.”