Leon Osman has claimed that the re-appointment of Roberto Martinez as Rafa Benitez’s successor at Everton would ‘divide the fans’.
Benitez was sacked on Sunday after a run of one win in 13 Premier League games left the Blues just six points clear of the relegation zone.
The appointment of the 61-year-old was a controversial one given his history with fierce rivals Liverpool but it was the dreadful run of results he oversaw that cost him his job.
Now Martinez, who is currently in charge of the Belgium national team, and who managed Everton between 2013-16, has been heavily linked with a return to the club.
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However, former Blues midfielder Osman, who played under Martinez during his spell at Goodison Park, is concerned that if the club did re-hire him, the decision could prove to be divisive amongst supporters.
"Everton appointed a man that divided the fans with regards to opinion in Rafael Benitez and you saw how little time he was given and how difficult it was for him to turn things around - and ultimately how it was the wrong decision," Osman told BBC Radio 5 Live .
"I do think to give Roberto Martinez a second shot at it would divide fans again. At the moment the club needs to be united. The club needs to all be pulling in the same direction to try and bring success back.
"There will be a section of the fans that would love to see Roberto back. There were times in that three years that we played some really good football. In that first season we finished in fifth position, but we’d been doing that for the previous five or six seasons as well.
"We quickly ended up finishing mid-table in the next two seasons and ultimately Roberto Martinez lost his job.
"There’s no doubting he’s a quality manager. He’s managing the Belgian national team.
"But I don’t think it would unite the fans if he were to come back to Everton, and that’s the issue for me."
