José Andrés Martínez Torres (born 7 August 1994) is a Venezuelan professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...
who plays as a
midfielder
In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...
for
Campeonato Brasileiro Série A
The Campeonato Brasileiro Série A (; English: "Brazilian Championship A Series"), commonly referred to as the Brasileirão (; English: "Big Brazilian" or "Great Brazilian"), the Série A or the Brazilian Série A (to distinguish it from the I ...
club
Corinthians
The First Epistle to the Corinthians () is one of the Pauline epistles, part of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-author, Sosthenes, and is addressed to the Christian church in C ...
and the
Venezuela national team. Martínez has been referred to by the nickname "el Brujo" (Spanish for "the Wizard").
Club career
Zulia
After two seasons with Deportivo JBL del Zulia, Martínez signed with
Zulia FC ahead of the Apertura tournament in December 2017.
While with Zulia, he earned the
2018 Copa Venezuela title and made a historic run in the
Copa Sudamericana
The CONMEBOL Sudamericana, also known as Copa Sudamericana (; ), is an annual international club football competition organized by CONMEBOL, the governing body of football in South America, since 2002. It is the second-most prestigious club com ...
; advancing through to the
quarter-finals
A single-elimination knockout, or sudden-death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of a match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final match-up, w ...
.
Philadelphia Union
In December 2019, Martínez signed a two-year contract with
Philadelphia Union
The Philadelphia Union are an American professional soccer club based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. Founded on February 28, 2008, the Union began ...
competing in
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...
for a transfer fee reported around $325,000.
Martínez made his debut start for the Union in a 3-3 draw at
Los Angeles FC
Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC) is an American professional association football, soccer club based in Los Angeles. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. It was establi ...
. During the 2020 season, Martinez grew praise for his quality of play as one of the best defensive midfielders in MLS. His first season in MLS finished with 14 regular season starts, contributing two assists, and ultimately resulting in the Union's first trophy, the
2020 Supporters' Shield.
In January 2021, Martinez signed a new contract with the Union through the 2022 season, with options for the 2023 and 2024 seasons.
[
On June 21, 2023, Jose Martinez scored a goal for the Union that was nominated for the ]MLS Goal of the Year Award
The MLS Goal of the Year Award (currently commercially termed "AT&T MLS Goal of the Year") is handed out annually since its inception in 1996 to a player in Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association footbal ...
.
Corinthians
In August 2024, Martínez signed with Corinthians
The First Epistle to the Corinthians () is one of the Pauline epistles, part of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-author, Sosthenes, and is addressed to the Christian church in C ...
competing in Brazil's Série A for a transfer fee reported up to $2,000,000.
International career
Martinez received his first official call up to the Venezuela national team in October 2020. He represented the senior Venezuela national team in a 3–1 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
The 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification was the FIFA World Cup qualification, qualifying process which decided the 31 teams that would join hosts Qatar national football team, Qatar, who received an automatic spot, at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Par ...
loss to Bolivia
Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...
on 3 June 2021.
Career statistics
Club
International
Honours
Zulia FC
*Copa Venezuela
The Copa Venezuela () is the national cup football competition of Venezuela. Organized by the Venezuelan Football Federation, it is contested in the second half of the season by the teams in the Primera División and Segunda División, excluding ...
: 2018
Events January
* January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency.
* January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
Philadelphia Union
*Supporters' Shield
The Supporters' Shield is an annual award given to the Major League Soccer team with the best regular season record, as determined by the MLS points system. The Supporters' Shield has been annually awarded at the MLS Supporters' Summit since 199 ...
: 2020
The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...
*MLS Cup
MLS Cup is the annual championship game of Major League Soccer (MLS) and the culmination of the MLS Playoffs. The game is held in November or December and pits the winner of the Eastern Conference Final against the winner of the Western Confere ...
runner-up: 2022
The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...
;Corinthians
*Campeonato Paulista
The Campeonato Paulista Série A1, commonly known as Campeonato Paulista, nicknamed Paulistão, is the top-flight professional state football league in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. Run by the São Paulo State Football Federation (FPF), ...
: 2025
So far, the year has seen the continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudanese civil war, and the Gaza war. Internal crises in Bangladesh post-resignation v ...
Individual
*MLS All-Star
The Major League Soccer All-Star Game is an annual Association football, soccer game held by Major League Soccer featuring selected players from the league against an international club or selected players from another league. MLS initially ado ...
: 2023
Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Martínez, José Andrés
1994 births
Living people
Venezuelan men's footballers
Venezuela men's international footballers
Venezuelan expatriate men's footballers
Deportivo JBL del Zulia players
Zulia F.C. players
Philadelphia Union players
Sport Club Corinthians Paulista players
Footballers from Maracaibo
Men's association football midfielders
Venezuelan expatriate sportspeople in the United States
Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States
Venezuelan expatriate sportspeople in Brazil
Expatriate men's footballers in Brazil
Major League Soccer players
2021 Copa América players
2024 Copa América players