Roberto Martinez: It’s time Everton ruled Merseyside again

Everton boss Roberto Martinez is keen for his players to steer the spotlight away from Steven Gerrard in this weekend’s Merseyside derby at Goodison Park.

Today’s Premier League contest is set to be the last meeting between the Toffees and Liverpool that Reds skipper Gerrard plays in. But when asked for his thoughts on that and the midfielder’s decision to move to Los Angeles Galaxy at the end of the season, Martinez said: “When we play the Merseyside derby at Goodison, we want it to be our Merseyside derby and that’s the only thing we are looking at. As a football club, we have been in a period when we haven’t been enjoying the results that we wanted, so we will look forward to it being our Merseyside derby.”

Everton have won only one of their last 12 encounters with Liverpool and none of the last nine, although they came close to beating them at home last season when only a late Daniel Sturridge equaliser ensured Martinez’s men were held to a 3-3 draw.