Wednesday 6 January 2016 10:27, UK
Roberto Martinez believes Everton must prioritise securing a Champions League berth ahead of winning cup competitions if they are to keep their young stars.
Everton host Manchester City in the first leg of their Capital Cup semi-final on Wednesday night, live on Sky Sports, and will be hoping to move a step closer to winning a first major trophy since 1995.
The Toffees are 11th in the league with 27 points, though they have registered fewer defeats than Crystal Palace, Liverpool, Watford and Stoke City, who all sit above them in the table.
Despite the team's struggles at times this season, particularly defensively, the future looks bright at Goodison Park with the likes of Romelu Lukaku, John Stones, Ross Barkley and Gerard Deulofeu among the league's best young players.
While Martinez would love to be the man to end Everton's trophy drought, he believes a top-four league finish, and a Champions League spot, would have a bigger impact in the long run and help convince the club's young stars to stay.
"I don't think winning a cup will keep the young players. I think qualifying for the Champions League could help to keep young players," said Martinez, who took charge in 2013.
Striker Lukaku is currently joint top scorer in the league with 15 goals, and the club have had to fend off interest in emerging English talents Stones and Barkley.
"Three years ago, it was a very experienced team who knew how to win games, but we had some sort of ceiling," said Martinez. "Now we have gone very, very young with immense potential to go beyond that ceiling, and there has been investment in that potential so we will get the rewards from it.
"There are no financial decisions that will dictate what this squad needs. I wouldn't say I don't want to win silverware, because that is what this club is about and our aim is to have that drive and ambition to do that, but the aim is get into the top four, and that is what we have set out to achieve."
Everton take on Dagenham & Redbridge in the FA Cup on Saturday before resuming league action against Manchester City midweek.
