Where does Everton go from here?

With today's far from surprising announcement that David Moyes would now attempt to fill Sir Alex Ferguson's sizable shoes at Manchester United, the beginning of a new era at Old Trafford likewise signaled the end of one at Goodison Park. Though Everton haven't reached the most dizzying of heights under David Moyes, fans of the blue half of Liverpool could have hardly had any complaints about a manager who over the course of eleven years in charge steadied the Everton ship and transformed them into a consistent, if not pragmatic, team that few looked forward to playing against and was perfectly capable of beating just about any other team on the right day.

Yes, a solid foundation will greet the new Everton manager, but much like the situation David Moyes is now plunging into, the job at Goodison Park is one that will come with its share of expectations and comparisons to Moyes' time in charge. With that said, it's a job that could be perfect for one manager who has been tipped for greater things in recent years. Contrastingly, it might also be a perfect chance for a once shining star in the managerial world to renew a bit of the luster that he has lost of late.


It's still early days yet, but if media speculation is to be believed at all, Roberto Martinez and Mark Hughes would seem to be the early favorites for a job that has great potential. The two men couldn't be stepping into this vacancy with more differing career trajectories, however.

For Martinez, there is probably no better time for him to jump to a club that, with all due respect to Wigan, is of a far greater pedigree than where he has been plying his trade for the last couple of seasons. On the surface it would be easy for the laymen to find nothing all too admirable in Martinez's managerial record, but the story with Martinez goes well beyond that, doesn't it? At Wigan, where resources are miniscule as compared to the vast majority of their Premier League rivals, Martinez has dared to employ an attractive, free-flowing style that often betrays those sides in the lower reaches of the table.

While Wigan have still found themselves in relegation battles under Martinez, performances against the biggest clubs in England, especially during the closing stages of the season, have certainly demonstrated that Martinez can instill belief in even the most frugally assembled of teams and stand toe to toe with some of the brightest managerial minds in the game. Should Martinez truly be in the frame for the Everton job, the squad's steady rearguard would only offer Martinez a bit more security in employing his preferred attacking style to great effect.

If Martinez is a star well on the rise in the managerial ranks, Mark Hughes, by comparison, would have to see the Everton job as something of a last chance saloon for his career as a manager--in the top flight, at least. In the wake of his more recent failings it is easy to forget that Hughes was once the manager on the rise in the English game following some fantastic seasons at Blackburn, but his shortcomings at Manchester City in the early days of their new money, his abandonment of Fulham, and his disastrous time in charge at QPR have sullied his reputation for some. Hughes hasn't forgotten all he knows about the game, but it is fair for one to pose questions about all that has gone wrong since his time at Ewood Park. Any doubts Everton fans would have about Hughes are indeed forgivable.

There may be other names outside of Martinez and Hughes to emerge in the coming days, but one thing is certain: Everton will need to get this hire right in order to maintain all that Moyes has built.