Atlanta United signed Venezuelan forward Josef Martinez as its third Designated Player. He will join the club on loan, with the MLS team holding an option to buy.
Martinez will join the MLS expansion club after making 58 appearances and scoring seven goals at Torino in Italy’s top division since 2014. The deal has reportedly been done for days, with Atlanta United confirming it on Thursday. Contract terms weren’t released.
Like the other two Designated Players Atlanta United signed, Hector Villalba and Miguel Almiron, Martinez is young (23), fast and can play several positions.
Martinez has played for the Venezuelan national team 37 times, scoring nine goals.
He started professionally at Caracas in his native country in 2010. He made 36 appearances and scored eight goals. He moved to Young Boys in Switzerland in 2012 where he made 38 appearances and scored four goals.
He has a reputation of scoring goals in bunches.
Martinez will bring a different skill set than Kenwyne Jones and Brandon Vazquez, the other two strikers on the roster. While those two are taller than 6-feet, Martinez is 5-7, but quicker and likely able to get into the channels between defenders.
It will be interesting to see if Gerardo Martino plays him off one of those two, alone up top, or on the left wing where he can use his speed in space.
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