I should preface this with two things:
1) Moyes is all I've known. And I liked him. I used to love him, but the relationship was irreconcilably damaged during the 'Spurs saga' last year, which far from an assurance of denial, he openly courted the attention - made to look a fool when that attention was shown to be spurious media speculation rather than genuine interest. And, in one of the most underwhelming reversals I can recall, he came shuffling back to start pre-season gloomier and moodier than ever. Perhaps this precipitated the spending spree - by our standards - that occured, and it turned out to be one of the best starts we'd made in years. We mostly forgot. But it always bubbled under the surface; as the final months of the contract approached, after the Spurs links, I never at any stage believed he'd sign a new contract. I was miserably preparing for the loss an inevitable slide into oblivion. Moyes was all I'd known - I simply couldn't envisage a successful Everton without him. Too many unknowns.
2) Roberto Martinez was one of my favourite managers. This had alot to do with a soft spot I had for Wigan - I like local teams and ever since Crespo curled one beautifully into the top corner in the 94th minute of their first game in the Premiership after a wonderful against-the-grain performance they'd had a place in my heart. Now, for the semi-neutral observer, Wigan underv Martinez were something to behold and genuinely one of the most exciting teams in the league. I'd watch them whenever they were on, less out of 'loyalty' (which was more of a look for their results/watch the important games kind of affinity) and far more out of wanting to be entertained. And they rarely if ever disappointed. When they weren't scoring or conceding they were making chances at a rate-of-knots, playing fluid and attacking football. The commitment to certain principles in how they played (encouraged by general shoddiness) made for some at times calamitous defensive errors; but they never once refused to play the right way. And I admired that more than anything.
They were fearless. They were unpredictable. In short, they typified everything I personally enjoyed about football. And more than anything, Martinez typified the kind of character I enjoyed: fair, articulate, passionate, respectful, gracious, proud. There was no groaning and moaning about how hard done to he was being manager of Wigan (not to say Wigan weren't hard done to; they really, frequently were. I can attest to the fact that referees are even worse to the teams lower down the league than they are to us) because on the contrary: he was proud to manage Wigan, proud to represent that town, proud of the supporters they did have rather than critical of the ones they didn't. The Villa and Liverpool links to Martinez made me sad and then sick: the rebuttals made me joyous in equal measure. What I mean is: he never once denigrated the club, because he knew what it meant to the people who supported it. That should be the minimum of every manager but sadly it isn't: so many are just blithely and insultingly ignorant of what the club means to those who care about it. I'd always say "I'd love for Martinez to take over when Moyes goes". In my head, the only way to calm the fears of the unknown was to bring in Martinez, but it felt like such a pipe dream that I was more fearful than ever thinking about what dross we could have recruited in lieu of Moyes. In summary, Martinez was essentially my ideal replacement - so I'm willing to be I was more delighted than anyone when we got him.
And it also has shown me just what a dour, unpleasant and self-serving sycophant Moyes actually was, or at least became. From the superiority complex to the mistreatment of players, media and fans (the Gwladys Street Glare), everything had soured and become distorted. I now am thankful every day that we've brought in someone whose values much better reflect what this club stands for, what it means. I don't mind being told it's an unfair game - it is, we can't compete financially with over half the league - that's fine. I do mind the less-than-subtle implication that as a result we didn't matter. That we were a small club. That it meant any less to us fans. And that attitude influenced everything Moyes did in the media: from the snarling defensiveness to the disinterested flippancy. He didn't care about serving up sh*t football and boring games, and felt he could hide behind the notion we should expect and deserved no more. I still believe Moyes is a good manager, and will win trophies with United, but his view that we were less important than him dictated many negatives that only became obvious after he left.
... and that leads me onto the thoughts for this season. There are some many variables, so many as-yet-unknowns from the remaining transfer budget, the final composition of the squad, the ability to adapt tactically, the ability to adapt technically, how the team will manage the transition. (Thus far it appears manfully: you can even detect the appreciative nod to the new and improved approach to preseason, and we've put together some lovely stuff in the last two games. But it's very early days) However, the overriding feeling is one of intense optimism and building excitement. I desperately want Martinez to succeed, because I love everything that he stands for. I hope that if and when the low periods come we stick by him. If everything goes as well as it can do before the season kicks off, I honestly wouldn't put a limit on our ambitions. I think we can do better than expected this year, and surprise people. Equally, we could start ****ting goals and drop like a stone.
What we won't do is fail to entertain and in a time when trophies are more of a dream than an aim, there's a lot I would sacrifice for that.
