Saúl Martínez

Saúl Martínez
Personal information
Full name Saúl Asael Martínez Álvarez
Date of birth (1976-01-29) 29 January 1976 (age 48)
Place of birth Colón, Honduras
Height 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
Position(s) Forward
Youth career
1995–1996 Melgar
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1997–1998 Long Island Rough Riders 41 (13)
1999 Miami Fusion 15 (4)
1999–2000 Hampton Roads Mariners 26 (16)
2000 Olimpia 5 (1)
2001 Motagua 17 (8)
2001–2002 Nacional 7 (0)
2002–2005 Shanghai Shenhua 86 (36)
2006 Omiya Ardija 3 (0)
2006–2007 Shanghai United 12 (3)
2007 Motagua (1)
2007 Shanghai Shenhua 7 (2)
2008 Herediano 8 (1)
2008–2010 Marathón 24 (9)
2010–2011 Victoria 14 (14)
2011 Marathón 6 (2)
International career‡
2001–2009 Honduras 35 (16)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 2008-09-27
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 2009-01-30
In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Martínez and the second or maternal family name is Álvarez.

Saúl Asael Martínez Álvarez (Latin American Spanish: [saˈul maɾˈtines]; born 29 January 1976) is a Honduran former football forward who last played for Marathón.

Club career

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Nicknamed Speedy, Saúl Martínez was born in Colón, Honduras. He started his career at Honduran second division side Melgar before moving abroad to play for American outfit Long Island Rough Riders. He was assigned to Major League Soccer team Miami Fusion in 1999.[1] His first game in Liga Nacional was on 10 December 2000 with Olimpia against Broncos.

China

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Martínez first attracted the attentions of Shanghai Shenhua when he scored four goals against Slovenia during the Lunar New Year Cup in Hong Kong in early 2002. Shenhua quickly signed him and afterwards, Martinez became one of the most important players in the Shenhua team. He would end up playing in Asia for five years, winning the 2003 Chinese league title with Shanghai Shenhua; that title was however taken away from the club in 2013 due to its part in a match-fixing scandal.[2] He also won the 2003 Golden Boot Award with Shanghai.

In January 2008, Martínez joined Costa Rican side Herediano for three months after a move to F.C. Motagua did not materialise.[3] He then had a couple of seasons at Marathón.

He made a remarkable return from retirement with Victoria in the 2010 Apertura season, topping the goalscoring charts at age 34[4] and ending the season as runner-up behind Jerry Bengtson with 11 goals.[5] In July 2011 he returned for another spell at Marathón.[6]

He retired from football at the end of 2011.[7] In 2013, he returned to playing and joined compatriot Érick Vallecillo at newly formed Miami United of the National Premier Soccer League.[8]

International career

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Martínez made his debut for Honduras in a July 2001 friendly match against Ecuador, in which he immediately scored a goal, and has earned a total of 35 caps, scoring 16 goals. He has represented his country in 11 FIFA World Cup qualification matches[9] and played at the 2007[10] and 2009 UNCAF Nations Cups[11] His international breakthrough however came during the 2001 Copa América, when Honduras surprisingly ended third and Martínez scored the second goal in the historic win over World Cup runners-up Brazil.[12]

His final international was a January 2009 UNCAF Nations Cup match against Panama.

Career statistics

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Club

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Club performance League
Season Club League Apps Goals
United States League
1997 Long Island Rough Riders USISL A-League 16 3
1998 25 10
1999 Miami Fusion Major League Soccer 15 4
2000 Hampton Roads Mariners USL A-League 26 16
Honduras League
2000/01 Olimpia Liga Nacional
2000/01 Motagua Liga Nacional
Uruguay League
2001 Nacional Primera División 6 0
2002 1 0
China PR League
2002 Shanghai Shenhua Jia-A League 20 8
2003 23 14
2004 Super League 14 6
2005 21 6
Japan League
2006 Omiya Ardija J1 League 3 0
China PR League
2006 Shanghai United Super League 12 3
Honduras League
2006/07 Motagua Liga Nacional
China PR League
2007 Shanghai Shenhua Super League 7 2
Costa Rica League
2007/08 Herediano Primera División 8 1
Honduras League
2008/09 Marathón Liga Nacional
2009/10
Country United States 82 33
Honduras
Uruguay 7 0
China PR 97 39
Japan 3 0
Costa Rica 8 1
Total 197 73

International

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Honduras national team
Year Apps Goals
2001 9 3
2002 2 4
2003 5 1
2004 11 2
2005 1 1
2006 0 0
2007 3 4
2008 1 0
2009 3 1
Total 35 16

International goals

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N. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 7 July 2001 Orange Bowl, Miami, USA  Ecuador 1–0 1–1 Friendly match
2 23 July 2001 Estadio Palogrande, Manizales, Colombia  Brazil 2–0 2–0 2001 Copa América
3 29 July 2001 Estadio Nemesio Camacho, Bogotá, Colombia  Uruguay 1–0 2–2 2001 Copa América
4 12 February 2002 Hong Kong Stadium, So Kon Po, Hong Kong  Slovenia 1–0 5–1 Carlsberg Cup
5 12 February 2002 Hong Kong Stadium, So Kon Po, Hong Kong  Slovenia 2–1 5–1 Carlsberg Cup
6 12 February 2002 Hong Kong Stadium, So Kon Po, Hong Kong  Slovenia 3–1 5–1 Carlsberg Cup
7 12 February 2002 Hong Kong Stadium, So Kon Po, Hong Kong  Slovenia 4–1 5–1 Carlsberg Cup
8 31 January 2003 Estadio Olímpico Metropolitano, San Pedro Sula, Honduras  Argentina 1–0 1–3 Friendly match
9 25 January 2004 Hong Kong Stadium, So Kon Po, Hong Kong  Norway 1–1 1–3 Carlsberg Cup
10 18 August 2004 Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto, Alajuela, Costa Rica  Costa Rica 5–2 5–2 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
11 7 September 2005 Miyagi Stadium, Rifu, Japan  Japan 3–1 4–5 Friendly match
12 27 January 2007 Estadio Tiburcio Carías Andino, Tegucigalpa, Honduras  Denmark 1–1 1–1 Friendly match
13 15 February 2007 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador  Nicaragua 6–1 9–1 2007 UNCAF Nations Cup
14 15 February 2007 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador  Nicaragua 8–1 9–1 2007 UNCAF Nations Cup
15 15 February 2007 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador  Nicaragua 9–1 9–1 2007 UNCAF Nations Cup
16 24 January 2009 Estadio Tiburcio Carías Andino, Tegucigalpa, Honduras  Nicaragua 3–1 4–1 2009 UNCAF Nations Cup

Honours

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Nacional Montevideo

Shanghai Shenhua

C.D. Marathón

References

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  1. ^ MLS: Honduran-born forward Saul Martinez allocated to Miami – SoccerAmerica
  2. ^ Saúl Martínez pierde título en China por sanción al Shanghai Shenhua – El Heraldo (in Spanish)
  3. ^ Saúl quiere jugar solo tres meses con Herediano Archived 12 April 2013 at archive.today – Prensa Libre (in Spanish)
  4. ^ Saúl Martínez como el vino, entre más añejo… – Fútbol de Honduras (in Spanish)
  5. ^ Saúl Martínez: “Para la semifinal estaré listo” – La Prensa (in Spanish)
  6. ^ Saúl regresa al Marathón – La Prensa (in Spanish)
  7. ^ Saúl Martínez: “Mejor me retiro que ganar menos” – La Prensa (in Spanish)
  8. ^ Miami United, Strikers, MLS Expansion – Miami Herald
  9. ^ Saúl Martínez – FIFA competition record (archived)
  10. ^ Qualifying Tournament for Gold Cup 2007 – Details – RSSSF
  11. ^ UNCAF (Qualifying Tournament for Gold Cup) 2009 – Details – RSSSF
  12. ^ Hace 10 años eliminamos a Brasil de Copa América – La Prensa (in Spanish)
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