Roberto Martinez ready to embrace Farhad Moshiri arrival at Everton

Everton manager Roberto Martinez is determined to embrace the challenge the additional pressure the club’s new billionaire investor Farhad Moshiri will demand.

Over the weekend the Iranian is believed to have agreed to pay about £85million (€109m) for an initial 49.9% share, pledging to plough significantly more into the club’s transfer dealings and infrastructure.

With money behind him — something few Everton managers have been blessed with — Martinez will be expected to deliver better results than he has this season with arguably the best squad in a generation.

Champions League qualification will now become even more of a focus but Martinez, whose side are currently 12 points adrift of the top four with a match in hand, is happy to operate under those expectations.

“It is something I want. As a manager I didn’t arrive at Everton saying ‘I hope I can stay here six or seven years and go through the motions’,” he said.

“I set the bar really high, I wanted a winning team and I wanted to get into the Champions League and that is still the case. With a new investor and fresh blood into our club all of a sudden you have a new opportunity to get to those aspirations quicker.”

Everton midfielder Mo Besic will not be fit to return against Aston Villa tonight as the Bosnia international remains sidelined by a hamstring. Irish midfielder Darron Gibson is still injured but striker Arouna Kone is fit.