Josef Martínez starts anew: The King addresses move from Atlanta to Miami 

Martínez, 29, scored 103 goals and provided 17 assists over 144 combined regular season and Audi MLS Cup Playoffs matches for Atlanta across six seasons, arriving in their inaugural 2017 season. He helped the club win MLS Cup 2018 and captured both Landon Donovan MLS MVP and Golden Boot presented by Audi awards that year as well. Martínez also won US Open Cup and Campeones Cup titles in 2019 with Atlanta.

This moment arrived thanks in no small part to Neville, who helped drive the interest and make sure Martínez knew he was wanted.

“Phil I think was the person who insisted the most [in signing me],” Martínez said. ” … He insisted and we’re here. I think it was a big piece of why we’re here. Since everything is new, you have to start little by little to get to know everyone. But they’ve opened the door for me, I’m one part of the team.

” … We’re soccer players and we want to win. We’re all competitive and I think that’s the most beautiful thing. I think it’s a beautiful group and I’m waiting for the first game.”

Martínez tore his ACL at the beginning of the 2020 season and hasn’t quite hit the same heights as his pyrotechnic first three seasons, as the injury has required subsequent surgeries. Still, Martínez had 21 goals and five assists in 3,097 minutes (a goal contribution every 119 minutes) over the last two seasons, despite the health concerns.

For his part, Martínez says he feels “very good” physically as he starts training with Miami.

“I’ll keep on doing the same thing. The only thing that’s changed is the jersey,” Martínez said. “The illusions are the same. I think that the most important thing for a striker is scoring goals, but for us the most important thing is winning. … Everybody wants to win. The most important thing is fighting till the end and doing the best you can.”