Redundancy & love - how Motherwell made Portugal boss Martinez

Roberto Martinez has come a long way from his time at Motherwell [SNS/Reuters ]

Roberto Martinez pushes open the door of a lively Motherwell barbers and sheepishly sits himself down.

One can only assume he's then asked if he has an appointment, this place is usually a busy one.

He doesn't, but he gets lucky. The barber, none the wiser and perhaps confused about a lack of hair to cut, calls him over before getting to work.

Imagine the reaction from fellow staff and other clients when the small talk process reaches the stage of asking, 'what is it you do, mate?'

In fairness, he isn't up to much at the time. Just a bit of time off from overseeing Belgium's golden generation of Kevin de Bruyne, Eden Hazard, Romelu Lukaku and the rest.

Maybe that's something Martinez enjoys about his trips back to Motherwell, a town on the outskirts of Glasgow. After all, the west of Scotland has a habit of bringing you back down to earth, even if it's unintentional.

It's also the birthplace of his wife, Beth, whom he met during his one-year stint playing in Lanarkshire, an experience that was "very good because it wasn't good," the Portugal head coach revealed in 2014.

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Martinez was pictured with a chef at the Moorings Hotel while visiting Motherwell in December 2018 [BBC]

Anyone plugged into the Motherwell social media algorithm might be accustomed to the odd bit of Martinez content appearing on their feed.

During the festive period in 2018, he was pictured with one of the chefs at the Moorings Hotel. In 2021, an image circulated of him watching local boys club Motherwell Phoenix train.

"It's not everyday Roberto Martinez turns up and watches your training session and takes a genuine interest," they tweeted at the time.

The Spaniard was in the midst of a six-year tenure as Belgium boss at that point.

Under Martinez, the Belgian side celebrated three straight years as Fifa's top-ranked nation, but he was unable to guide a star studded team to a major honour.

He did, however, lead them to a World Cup semi-final in 2018 and the last eight of Euro 2020. He lost to the eventual tournament winners on both occasions - France and Italy.

Those six years with Belgium came after guiding Swansea back to the second tier of English football, winning the FA Cup with Wigan and securing a fifth-placed finish at Everton.

But it was nine months in Motherwell that shaped Martinez. It was where he met his future wife, with whom he has raised two children.

There was no romance on the pitch, though. The former midfielder failed to live up to the hype after arriving from Wigan in 2001.

Sixteen appearances, just eight of which were starts, then redundancy - along with 18 other players - when the Fir Park club went into administration.

"Motherwell was a very good experience because it wasn't a good experience," he recalled.

"As a manager it has helped me immensely. Being able to understand a dressing room undergoing administration was at the time very hurtful, but it has made me the manager I am now.

"As a whole I really enjoyed Scottish football. It wasn't a success from a personal point of view at the time, but it has become one of the biggest footballing lessons in my development as a manager."

Martinez also had to deal with relegation at Wigan, a sacking at Everton and a shock World Cup group exit with Belgium before resigning in 2022.

Would any of those have hurt as much as being made redundant as a player? Who knows, but it's certainly played a part in his resilient make-up as a coach.

Now Portugal boss, he is again overseeing another crop of world class talent with huge expectancy.

Martinez has lost just two of his 17 games since being appointed last year. He won all 10 of his Euro 2024 qualifiers - 36 goals were scored, just two conceded.

Portugal have backed that up with two wins - against Czech Republic and Turkey - from two group games at the finals.

There's arguably no stronger squad in Germany: Ruben Dias, Joao Cancelo, Joao Palhinha, Vitinha, Rafael Leao, Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva, Joao Felix and Diogo Jota to name a few.

That Cristiano Ronaldo fella isn't bad either. And the list doesn't end there.

Whether the pressure that comes with boasting such a select is a good thing remains to be seen, but Martinez's similar experience with Belgium could well be crucial in leading him to his greatest feat.

If he goes on to lift the trophy in Berlin next month, there would be no reason for him to go unnoticed by his next Motherwell barber with a Euros winners' medal round his neck.