Juan Manuel Martínez

Martínez started playing for Vélez Sársfield on October 1, 2003, in a 2–1 win over Talleres de Córdoba, for the Clausura tournament. Later, he was part of the 2005 Clausura winning squad, playing 13 games and scoring 1 goal. The goal he scored was Vélez's first in that championship, in the fourth match day victory over Lanús (2–1). After his first period at Vélez, Martínez was loaned to Argentinos Juniors. With his new team, he played 10 games during the 2005 Apertura, suffering a knee injury in the 11th fixture that left him out for almost the entire rest of the season. He returned for the last game of the 2006 Clausura, coming on as a substitute on a 1–0 victory over Colón. In 2007, after a half-a-year period back at Vélez, Martínez was loaned to Colombian club Cúcuta Deportivo. With the team, he was part of the Copa Libertadores semifinalist campaign. Subsequently, he spent the 2007–08 season on loan at Al-Shabab Riyadh in Saudi Arabia. Martínez returned to Vélez Sársfield for the 2008–09 Argentine Primera División season. Upon his return, he won the Argentine league for the second time, by being part of the 2009 Clausura squad. The forward played 9 games and scored 1 goal during the tournament (against Colón in a 4–2 away win, helping the team come back from a 0–2). He ended the tournament as a starter after replacing injured Jonathan Cristaldo for the last two games, against Lanús and Huracán, which defined the championship. Up until the 2010 Apertura, Martínez had…

In November 2010, Martínez participated in the Argentina national team that solely consisted of Argentine League players. They trained twice a week and had friendly matches leading up to the 2011 Copa América. The striker received his first call-up by coach Sergio Batista on January 25, 2011, for a friendly match against Portugal. He was brought down in the penalty area during injury time to win a penalty for his side from which Messi scored the winner.

International appearances and goals

As of match played 2 July 2022

Vélez Sársfield

Argentine Primera División: 2005 Clausura, 2009 Clausura, 2011 Clausura Corinthians

FIFA Club World Cup: 2012 Individual

Footballer of the Year of Argentina: 2010