Thiago Martins

Martins came to America in 1999 to play college soccer for the University of California, Santa Barbara. In his first season he only played in 11 games due to a foot injury, but still managed to score 6 goals. In his second season, he again scored 6 goals in 18 matches, and was named to the All-West Coast Conference First Team.

Martins left UCSB in 2001 to play for the defunct San Diego Flash of the A-League. After their demise at the end of the 2001 season, Martins joined the Minnesota Thunder, where he scored 2 goals in 11 appearances. Martins was released, and moved to the Pittsburgh Riverhounds, also of the A-League, where he hit his stride, scoring 8 goals in only 576 minutes over 8 games. Martins truly emerged in the 2003 season, during which he scored 22 goals and 7 assists in 25 games for the Riverhounds, and was named A-League MVP. After the end of the A-League season, Martins joined D.C. United, where he played in five games before the end of the season.

While training following the 2003 season, Martins tore his left ACL; after an extensive rehabilitation process, he tore the ACL again soon before returning to the team, and in the end missed all of United's 2004 season because of his injuries. After the season, Martins was selected 17th overall by Chivas USA in the 2004 MLS Expansion Draft. He scored the first goal in club history in its second match, a 3-3 tie with the San Jose Earthquakes.

See also