Reviews

After grinding out a few games with a coin boost activated I decided that my first big signing (more than 1k-2k) would be this beast. I opted for the deadeye chemistry style which would bring him up to a 90 rated striker in game, not too shabby for the first week of the new Fifa!

Pace 10/10

Immediately in his first game it was easy to notice just how quick this guy is both on and off the ball. He breezes past all defenders but the most rapid of fullbacks (e.g Bellerin), getting himself a good few yards free before getting shots off. This pace combined with 94 agility and a low centre of gravity means that he can quickly change direction at speed, making it a nightmare for opposition defenders to try and track him. This pace also allows him to make up tons of ground when a cross gets floated into the box, meaning he always feels like he is in the right place at the right time. He is by far the fastest player I have used in this Fifa so far and I could not ask for much more in the pace department. Sweaty but a nice sweaty.

Shooting 9/10

Martinez's shooting really is exactly what you'd expect of an inform card with 99 finishing (once deadeye is applied). Anywhere in the box is fair game for this guy and as long as he has a reasonable angle on the goal, you'd bet your first born child that this guy is going to smash it home. He is capable of all kinds of finishes in the box with low driven shots and slight finesses seeming to be my most common goals with him. Long shots is a rather mixed bag experience with some creeping in the corner, or most likely the crossbar, from 25-35 yards but most find their way comfortable into row ZZ. Stick to shooting from the inside of the box if you plan on winning.

Heading 8/10

Heading was a pleasantly surprising experience. With a most height of 5'8" you'd expect him to crumble under the colossal height of Chris Smalling and his cronies however I found myself scoring a nice amount of headers with Martinez. His crazy jumping (99) and heading accuracy (92) stats mean that he both climbs high and has the ability to place all kinds of headed shots on target. I found myself scoring a headed goal every other game with Martinez with several coming from set pieces. This isn't to say he is one of the deadliest aerial threats in the game however he will give defenders something to think about when a whipped cross heads into the box.

Passing 7/10

Martinez should not be doing a great deal of passing for you other than short one-twos and the occasional cross when he sometimes finds himself out on the wing. He easily lands short passes and long passes land on target, but he is clearly no Pirlo. There are no major issues here but there is nothing to shout about.

Dribbling 9/10

Martinez's mad pace means that he can zip strait into the opponents box however it's his immense dribbling which really steals the show. Whilst running at speed Martinez can rapidly cut in and out, changing direction on a whim, making it near impossible to guess which way he will run past you! The ball is glued to his feet for the most part and his balance along with reasonable physicality means that he is not easily bullied off the ball. He rapid changing of direction won me several penalties as defenders often caught him after he had already passed them in the box. Overall very nice to run with the ball with.

Defending

If you are trying to defend with Martinez you are doing something wrong. Go play PES.

Overall 9/10

If you find yourself with a spare 12k and fancy trying an MLS hybrid team, Martinez is your man. Overall a quality striker who will score goals for you most games, often from out-pacing defenders, if you give him the right service. It will be very difficult for me to sell him should I want to swap things around in my team, he has already achieved legend status for my club.

My most trusted super-sub striker and one of the best cards I have used on any fifa for a long time. The only main problem with this card is the fact he is hard to fit in any sort of hybrid and the MLS isn't the strongest league to be building an effective team from. If you buy this card at the right time you can get him for as little as 15K but on average is around 17K which is still extremely cheap for a card that boasts 90 pace, good physical and good dribbling. The fact I bring him on as a sub means I can play him any any position on full chem in which any of the following positions (ST, CF, CAM, LM-LF, RM-RF) he can play in very effectively and change a game.

• Pace: Lighting quick. Enough said. He has never been caught by a player in a footrace.
• Shooting: Inside the box he is very clinical on both feet however I would recommend using driven shots more than finesse shots as these are more effective with this player. In terms of long shots I rarely feel the need to take them as his ability to work his way into the box means its worth doing that rather than take a long shot. On the odd occasion I have taken a long shot with him it has tended to be on target but hasn't overly troubled the goalkeeper.
• Passing: His passing is reasonably good, but it's probably more effective to dribble your way to creating chances instead. He has a relatively good assist ratio of almost 1 assist in every 3 games from me.
• Dribbling: In combination with his pace, his dribbling makes him unstoppable. 94 dribbling means defenders simply cannot touch him and if they do, they still aren't getting the ball.
• Physical: He is only 5'7 so don't be expecting him to win many headers, even with 99 jumping it just doesn't happen. His strength on the other hand is much better than 79 I find. Due to high balance, agility and pace defenders do not have enough time to shove him of the ball so he has enough strength to hold off defenders for that split moment whilst he is getting past them.

Shooting - Martinez just always puts it inside the goal, being an absolute clinical finisher (only with his strong foot)

Passing - For a 20k striker, his passing is ok

Pace - His pace is outstanding and because of that he can always win the runs against defenders

Dribbling - Better than expected. Martinez has an awesome ball control but his skills are not good at all

Defending - no one really cares about that

Physical - He has ok stamina but his strength and aggression are bad. Normally he loses the ball when a defender manages to catch him