Martinez: A Hard Result To Take

Everton saw their last hopes of salvaging some pride from this train wreck of a season disappear in injury time late on in the FA Cup semi final against Manchester United. Not for the first time either. The Blues might even consider themselves lucky to have been in a position to draw this game, after being totally outclassed in the first half.

However, a spirited performance in the second drew the Toffees level, and even gave fans hope that they could somehow steal a win. But they had to then endure seeing a berth in the Final cruelly snatched away by yet another example of the defensive frailty that will now surely claim Roberto Martinez's job, either tomorrow or at the end of a season that cannot end quickly enough for Everton.

Here's what the manager had to say after the game -

"It is a hard result to take.

"The feelings we share now are as cruel as football can be. It took 45 minutes to get into our rhythm but we showed a strong mentality to dig in and stay in the game and we also created two clear-cut opportunities.

"The transformation was in the second half display; we had a greater tempo and intensity to get ourselves into the game.

"We didn't deserve to be on the losing side and I feel we would have been the stronger team in extra time. That's why it's a major disappointment.

"Over the 90 minutes we at least deserved the right to go into extra time. We were a little sluggish in the first half but we got the equaliser and so to concede in injury time is a blow we didn't deserve.

"I thought the fight we showed was really strong; a team with incredible togetherness. The support we had behind us was terrific. We dealt with the tough period in the first half and we were strong mentality to cope."

He felt that Everton had gotten stronger as the game progressed, and could have won too.

"The longer the game went on, the bigger chance we had," Martinez noted. "The game was going our way, the chances were coming and I felt we were the stronger team. It is tough to lose a semi-final because the feeling is it was a very undeserved result."

Regarding the chances missed by the Blues, especially those by Romelu Lukaku who could have sealed the result -

"I always feel the players, strikers especially, need to be measured in the chances they create.

"Sometimes the goalkeeper gets credit, sometimes you need some fortune. His second half performance was of a very mature footballer and he's still a young man."

The manager also thanked the very vocal support at Wembley from over 32,000 Toffees -

"I have spent three years at the football club and I've always said Everton is a very special club. You could see that with the way the fans represented the football club at Wembley.

"Every season we are developing and we are reaching certain signs that we can please our fans and bring silverware that they deserve but clearly in moments like this - of true disappointment - it can be real difficult to see the good things we have developed."

Now it remains to be seen this fine Sunday if this fine FA Cup game was also Roberto's last in charge of Everton.