The devil is in the detail for the great mind of Martinez
ROBERTO MARTINEZ possessed one crucial flaw that prevented him from starring for Motherwell. ‘Well, he did want a bit of time on the ball,’ recalled Pat Nevin, then chief executive at Fir Park. ‘It was a shame it was so brief because he was a really nice player. Just not necessarily suited to Scottish football.’
Perhaps there was more chance of Martinez, complete with a diploma in business and marketing, comprehending and appreciating the dire straits to beset the club later in the campaign than of him swaggering around Fir Park scattering passes at his leisure throughout the season.
Martinez’s short playing spell in Scotland’s top flight is remembered more for the Spaniard being one of the 19 first-team players released in the immediate aftermath of the club’s descent into administration. The axe fell following eight starts and eight substitute appearances, with the Belgium boss completing 90 minutes on only three occasions.
Now he is in charge of arguably the most talented squad at the World Cup finals and under intense pressure to coax the group into coming good on a ‘golden generation’ promise.
According to Nevin, Martinez the head coach has retained all the
unwavering courage of his convictions which rather made his assimilation to the game in Scotland so tricky.
Belgium’s bid for glory this summer could either stand or fall by those principles and, ahead of their opener against Tunisia tomorrow, it will be a fascinating watch to see if this crowns or cracks Martinez and his lavishly gifted group.
Martinez was well known for his fine punditry on Sky’s La Liga coverage when he rocked up in Lanarkshire on a free in the summer of 2001. And for a Billy Davies-led team, Nevin recalls the then 27-year-old being convinced that a touch of pace and style from Spain could be laced into his midfield role in Scotland.
‘You weren’t going to get that time and space with the way our game was at the time,’ said Nevin. ‘But he never stopped doing what he wanted to do and what methods he believed in. That was his personality. His was the Spanish way of keeping the ball and not the quick ball forward.
‘Not entirely tiki taka, but pretty and a beautiful-looking game in his eyes. Retrospectively, he was probably right! Maybe everyone should have been looking to play like that. ‘It was difficult for him. When I first met him, we immediately hit it off. We were like friends rather than work colleagues or boss. He came across as a guy with considered ideas. ‘As a pundit, it was not just throwaway lines. I thought he was phenomenal, one of the best. ‘He had been in England with Wigan and I think you try to educate people in your methods. But we have to adapt to the game we are in to some degree. I spent a career thinking: “I don’t want to play that way — but I needed to at times”. I think that was hard for Robbie.’ Critics of ‘Robbie’ in Belgium believe the devotion to a 3-4-3 or 3-4-2-1 formation will expose the team defensively against the better opposition. Tunisia and Panama should be beaten on class terms alone, probably England too.
Colombia or a Brazil quarter-final present a far greater challenge to a back line that can be got at because of a lack of protection.
Following a 3-3 draw against Mexico in November, Kevin De Bruyne went public to discuss tactical misgivings. Gary Caldwell, Martinez’s captain at Wigan, tells a different story of Martinez’s brilliance in knockout games against more revered opponents. This could serve Belgium rather well.
‘In preparing for individual games, which the World Cup essentially is, he was the best I’ve ever seen,’ said the former Scotland defender. ‘When we won the FA Cup (in 2013), the quarter-final against Everton and final against Man City stand out.
‘Everton were a strong team under David Moyes and we totally outplayed them. He created massive overloads on the pitch based on his three-at-theback, which allowed us to create lots of possession the way he wanted.
‘And he went there when no one was doing it. Now it’s in fashion a bit, with England doing it and Chelsea lifting a Premier League title.
‘He did it in 2011/12, allowing us to beat teams with better players and, tactically, he won the battles with Moyes and Roberto Mancini.’
The plan, reveals Caldwell, was a year-and-a-half in the making.
‘This highlights the vision of the man,’ he added. ‘When I signed from Celtic, he spoke to me about me playing in the middle of a three and that my lack of pace wouldn’t be an issue with my organisational skills. I could pass and utilise my strengths.
‘We didn’t get there for another 18 months because we didn’t have the personnel. But it was in his head. He signed me then others to fit the way. And when he got Jean Beausejour from Birmingham, essentially a left winger, that’s when it clicked.
‘Roberto told me he was one of the best wing-backs I’d ever see. With that formation we beat Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal. All the big teams struggled to deal with it. Where Belgium have their struggles is defensively. That’s the one weakness.
‘But Roberto will know his game plan against every team already. He’ll have watched every single potential opponent so, if they’re in the quarters and due to play Germany or Argentina, he’ll have a different game plan for both already sorted.’
Injury problems suffered by their superb skipper Vincent Kompany has just made Belgium that bit more vulnerable. Celtic’s Dedryck Boyata or Los Angeles FC’s Laurent Ciman — a reserve who could be promoted
He never stopped doing what he wanted to do. That was his personality
In preparing for individual games, which the World Cup is, he is the best I’ve ever seen
to the squad today to replace Kompany — offer sharp downgrades to accompany Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld in front of No1 Thibaut Courtois.
Nevin, in Moscow working at the tournament for BBC Radio, has misgivings. He said: ‘There are phenomenal players that have to be in the team but Belgium have stuck to that 3-4-3 and are not moving. I think you have to make sure two of the three at the back are quick and comfortable going into wide areas.
‘And they are not. It’s kind of weird. Have you got cover in front? But they’re all attackers. He’s devoted to this concept. I don’t know if it’s a great idea to do that at a World Cup. You must be a bit adaptable.’
In becoming the first European team to reach Russia, Belgium shared with the Germans a recordbreaking 43-goal tally in a campaign featuring nine wins and a draw. The stunning talents of De Bruyne, Axel Witsel, Eden Hazard and Dries Mertens can all be shoehorned into the team to work the ball for Romelu Lukaku to profit.
Kicking off against Panama tomorrow, then Tunisia next Sunday, Lukaku is primed for a fast start in Russia. Nevin believes Martinez will need more from his hulking exEverton front man if Belgium are to reach the last four and beyond.
‘I think he could score a bunch of goals at the start — I wouldn’t be at all surprised if he got four or five in the group,’ said Nevin. ‘Coming up against better teams, you wonder about that. Lukaku was known at Everton as a bit of a flat-track bully.
‘When he’s not involved he can often not look that interested. Maybe he doesn’t need to because there’s Hazard and others to be creative for him but he must interact more — and I think Robbie wants more.’
Much of Lukaku’s laconic approach in previous tournaments may have been down to a loathing of coach Marc Wilmots. That was stripped bare last month when the striker savaged Wilmots, claiming he never felt supported by the boss who led Belgium to the quarter-finals of the 2014 World Cup and Euro 2016.
The rigid tactics of Wilmots were felt to have stifled the creativity of players whose high-class attributes weren’t capitalised on. Certainly, under Martinez, there are few barriers to freedom for his attacking stars.
‘I was quite surprised when Robbie got the Belgium job but when I thought about it he’s got a good CV, still young and they had a team with fantastic talent, so there was no point in a manager who put out a team over-strict and held them back,’ said Nevin.
‘They needed a manager who gave them freedom, let them go. Belgium have perhaps, then, gone from one extreme to another. I’m on his side. I really hope that works.’