Atlanta United’s record-breaking goal scorer added another piece of hardware to his trophy case on Wednesday afternoon.
Venezuelan forward Josef Martinez, who broke the single-season scoring record in Major League Soccer with 31 goals, was named MLS Most Valuable Player.
Martinez tallied 31 goals and six assists in 34 regular-season games for the Five Stripes, with the record-shattering strike coming in an August 24th game against Orlando City.
In two seasons with Atlanta, Martinez netted 50 regular-season goals, and he has three additional tallies in the 2018 postseason.
Martinez is the second straight South American player to win the award after Diego Valeri captured the honor a year ago.
The 25-year-old forward is also the fifth consecutive foreign-born winner of the MVP award following in the footsteps of Robbie Keane, Sebastian Giovinco, David Villa and Valeri.
Martinez will now turn his sights toward Saturday’s MLS Cup Final where the Five Stripes welcome the Portland Timbers to Mercedes-Benz Stadium.