Arsene Wenger believes Roberto Martinez has what it takes to become a ‘super manager’.

Speaking ahead of our clash against Everton on Saturday, Wenger praised the Toffies’ strength and hailed their manager.

“[Everton is a] tough place because they have a strong squad,” Wenger said.

“They’re a team that has huge potential as well and always a good crowd so we expect a strong opponent but let’s focus on our performance.”

Martinez’s time at Everton has been up and down. He started well but their form has been inconsistent, particularly this season. At the moment, they sit down in 12th, which is considerably lower than where they usually are at this point in the season. With this in mind, questions have already started to get asked about whether Martinez is the right person for the job.

“Personally, I rate him as a quality manager,” Wenger said.

“First of all, will he want to do that (stay at Everton)? The longer you stay the more you’re questioned. Secondly, will the club want to do that? I think he has the qualities to be a super manager.”

Wenger can obviously empathise with Martinez to a degree, although he’s been under scrutiny for much longer than the Everton manager. There’s obviously a huge amount of respect there, which I’m sure is mutual.

Everton have caused us problems in the past and we can’t let the fact that they’re in mid-table influence how we approach the game.