Roberto Martinez has been rewarded for his record-breaking first season as Everton manager with a new five-year contract that will extend his stay at Goodison Park to 2019.
The Spaniard, who took over from David Moyes at the start of last season, led Everton to their highest ever points tally in the Premier League in 2013/14.
Having just missed out on the coveted final Champions League place, the Toffees are nonetheless back in Europe after finishing fifth, with many pointing to Martinez as the impetus for the upsurge in form.
Speaking about his new deal, Martinez said: “I am delighted to have been given the opportunity to make a further commitment to Everton.
“I loved my first season at the club. I could not be more proud of the way Everton performed throughout the entire season and the memories we were able to make together. I am really excited about next season.”
After such an excellent start, Martinez is now tasking himself with taking the club a step further by qualifying for the Champions League next season and ending the club’s 19-year wait for silverware.
Everton chairman Bill Kenwright lauded the Catalonian manager as one of the best young managers in European football.
Kenwright said: “He [Martinez] took on an unfamiliar challenge for most managers, to take something really good and make it even better. In his debut season he broke our Premier League record points haul, got us back into Europe and developed some of the most exciting young footballers in the game.
“He conducts himself off the pitch in the same way. He undertakes his business with great style, confidence, positivity and class. He is an Everton man.”
Currently in Brazil, Martinez is working as a television pundit at the 2014 World Cup .