Football
Mike Whalley 9y

Everton boss Roberto Martinez backs Wigan decision to hire Malky Mackay

LIVERPOOL -- Everton boss Roberto Martinez has backed his former club Wigan's controversial decision to appoint Malky Mackay -- saying: "We all make mistakes."

Mackay was named manager of the Championship club on Wednesday, despite the fact that he is being investigated by the Football Association over allegations that he sent racist, sexist and homophobic text messages while he was in charge at Cardiff.

UK anti-racism campaign group Kick It Out criticised the appointment, while Wigan MP Lisa Nandy wrote to club chairman Dave Whelan warning him that several of her constituents opposed the hiring of the former Scotland defender.

Whelan has indicated that Wigan could cancel Mackay's contract if he is found guilty by the FA, which has not made public how long it expects the investigation to take.

Martinez, who played for Wigan between 1995 and 2001, before returning for a four-year stint as manager in 2009, said that he believed Whelan would have considered the possibility of a negative public reaction when deciding to bring in Mackay.

The current Everton boss said: "I'm sure he has. If there is an investigation, then until it's concluded, all of the talk is unnecessary. We all make mistakes, and the opportunity now is for Wigan to try to get back to winning football games.

"Malky Mackay has a really good record of getting teams out of the Championship, and in terms of finding success very, very quickly. I wish them the very best of luck."

Mackay, sacked by Cardiff in December 2013, was a candidate to take charge at Crystal Palace in August when the text messages came to light. Palace subsequently decided to look elsewhere for a manager, appointing Neil Warnock instead.

Mackay later admitted that he had sent text messages that were "disrespectful of other cultures," and has enrolled on education programmes in an attempt to rehabilitate himself. But at a news conference to announce his arrival at Wigan on Wednesday, Mackay said he was "absolutely not racist".

Martinez said: "Wigan are a phenomenal football club. It's a special story. What Wigan have achieved, through the dream of a chairman, sets a football example. It's something quite unique.

"From a distance, I just hope the new manager can settle in. He's got a really good squad to work with, and they can put together a winning streak to try to get back into the play-off positions.

"Malky Mackay is a man who I think is going to enjoy the challenge. He's going to enjoy working for the club, because they are a phenomenal, phenomenal club for a manager."

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