Everyone loves nostalgia. Though we’re a quarter of the way through the 21st century, it’s fun sometimes to reflect on the “good old days”. That’s why Myspace is reportedly looking to make a comeback.
But is it always for the best?
Look, I was thrilled for Miguel Almirón’s return to Atlanta United. Almirón is a club icon that, at worst, would garner excitement among a fanbase that needed it and, at best, would help elevate the team’s on-field performance. Sadly, outside of a decent run of form (three goals in as many matches), Miggy version 2 hasn’t been able to hold a candle to version 1. (Not that he was ever going to, but the struggles have far outweighed the achievements so far).
Which brings us to Josef Martínez, who is a free agent after scoring once in nine appearances with Tijuana before a mutual termination of his contract.
Atlanta United is looking for a striker after sending Emmanuel Latte Lath on loan to Union Berlin. The names have been varied: Breel Embolo, Darwin Núñez, Romelu Lukaku, and Alvaro Morata. But there’s been no luck as of yet as Lukaku appears headed for Fenerbahçe and Núñez to Trabzonspor, while there hasn’t been much from the Embolo and Morata camps lately.
Should Atlanta, then, push to reunite with the best player in club history?
The pros: With Atlanta last in the Supporters’ Shield standings and all but out of playoff contention, Martínez being back in a Five Stripes uniform would certainly be a key selling point. He’s not that far removed from his 14g/2a season with the San Jose Earthquakes in 2025. Bringing him back for the remainder of the 2026 season and the abbreviated sprint season of 2027 can buy the club some time before going all-in on a prime target for the 2027-28 campaign. He certainly wouldn’t command a DP contract, leaving it open for Atlanta to use on another position of need (i.e. winger). And who knows? Maybe reuniting with Almirón could serve as a rising-tide situation for the roster as a whole.
But would it ultimately be worth pursuing? Per Felipe Cardenas, while there was interest between the two sides “months ago,” that seems to have cooled off.
If Martínez did return, that’s not to say he’d be ineffective. But even if he is good for about 10-12 goals, would he relish the fact of scoring those goals for a team that needs an upgrade in so many other areas? And this a place he loves deeply, despite the acrimonious end to his first spell, so does a temporary return honor that connection or cheapen it? What would it mean for the first-team development of players like Arif Kovac, who has had a sensational season with ATL UTD 2?
I wrote this in May shortly after Martinez left Xolos:
It could be that Martínez wants to close his career in Atlanta — a place he’s likened to his version of an FC Barcelona or Real Madrid — but this can’t be just a “warm and fuzzy feelings” signing. Plus, how much of his failure to make an impact with Xolos was the club and league just being a bad fit, coming in at the wrong time, or simply due to a physical decline?
To be clear, this post is not me saying “I’m against Josef Martínez coming back to Atlanta United.” But is it the best move for the club long-term, or would it simply be a nostalgia play with the added benefit of selling tickets and merchandise? That’s the question the front office needs to answer.
Waited too long and now he’s off to trash ass columbus.
The question for me is, with all the nostalgia and buzz that his signing would have caused if he came back here, how does it make more sense for Columbus to sign him than us? Having him here would have made the rest of this lost season at least somewhat enjoyable. And it’s not like we have anyone else on the cusp of signing.
Feels like yet another miss by our esteemed organization.
After seeing him sign with Columbus, the point that I think needed to be made was clear. If we don’t sign him, he’ll just sign with someone else and come back and destroy us (again). It was never about the rebuild, it was about finishing this season on a not-so-low point, letting him come back, bring the nostalgia, allow him to retire as he wishes, and use this time to find the long term solution up front.
You have to remember, if/when Alzate and Muyumba leave, that saves us nearly $2M if I recall the salaries. That plus other savings and knowing what’s happening with ELL keep us out of trouble but also would hopefully keep us away from the wooden spoon but as of right now, that’s all but ours.
Well, we can kill this idea…he just signed with the Columbus Crew.
Apparently, a deal for the balance of 2026 with an option to extend – clearly not a DP deal. Not sure why Atlanta didn’t pursue something similar.
saw that too, makes me wonder how those conversations went because apparently he had at least one with Tata.
Would love to see him back in the stripes but as a back-up to a younger DP #9. 15 – 20 minutes off the bench and spot starts when needed.
Eh, it would get billed as a nostalgia play, but it might make some sense. I’d honestly rather roll the dice on Josef re-uniting with Tata and Miggy and returning to a club he once loved to play for, especially if we can get him on some club-friendly terms. It might buy the FO time to make more moves but providing some level of stability and functionality up top. I wouldn’t expect miracles, but he knows how to play in this league. He wasn’t peak Josef (and never will be again) at Montreal or SJ, but had some pretty solid seasons in 2024 and 2025. If we could get that rate of production, that might give the club enough stability to address other areas of need in the winter. Just basically rent him for the rest of this season and spring, if possible.
As for how it affects Kovac, I don’t think it does unless he really wants to sign here. Without a first team contract, he can only play one more MLS match this season, and it sounds like he’s keen on the move to Kalmar, though I haven’t seen any reports since those rumors were first reported.
3/4 hard just thinking about it
As our roster current stands, Josef would probably still be the best pure finisher on the squad. Can’t hurt if he’s healthy and not looking for a longterm deal.
Miggy’s game was purely based on pace and I was very skeptical, correctly, of bringing him back.
Sign him as a non DP. This season is shot so who cares.
I would have liked to get lewandowski though.
And let’s not forget the chicken and rice attitude he would hopefully bring. May be just what this team needs.
No
Nononononono
This shit needs to stop. Have we learned nothing?!
Miggy came into a garbage team full of players who couldn’t play together to save their lives. Not to mention, he’s still…NOT A WINGER. Also, he’s got Miranchuk who’s a near duplicate of him which causes conflict on the field. Not making excuses for him, still think he can contribute but we need the sum of all parts to get figured out.
And no one is saying Josef is the answer to the problems, but what would it hurt? We don’t have any significant strikers right now. Cayman? Meh. Sergios? constantly hurt. Arif? Actually, wish we’d pick him up and give him first team minutes. I’d prefer him and Josef right now, but like others have said, we need grit and fear at that position. We haven’t had that since GG. I’d pay just to see Josef come back, piss off some CB’s and get into a fight instead of scoring goals just to say our on field product “looked like they tried”
Josef would absolutely not be the long-term solution this team needs, but if we’re looking at guys like Lukaku, I’d rather have Josef as the short-term fix. At the very least I’d feel sympathy for the team doing bad on the field instead of derision.
I’d be okay with getting Josef on a reasonable (non-DP) contract through the short season – use him as a part time starter / super sub. I know he is not his old self, but he is still a damn sight better than ELL is/was, and he certainly holds his teammates accountable.
It would be a nostalgia signing simply for a temporary boost in attendance and goodwill. The past is gone. Time to look ahead.
Josef is a shell of his former self (as we all know.) But he would provide two factors that AU seems to have been missing almost since his departure. First and foremost, he puts the ball in the back of the net. He doesn’t create separation and disruption the way he used to, but if he does get service in the box, he fucking converts. And we haven’t had that since GG at the least.
The other thing Josef would bring is an immediate spike in DAWGx. And this team has lacked DAWG for a decade now.
This is where I am. He’s looking to retire, how about go out here as long as he doesn’t command a DP slot or a high salary. Even though he’s a shell of his former self too, he was still putting balls in the net for Montreal (2 against us), Miami and San Jose.
Our scoreline, I believe, is due to a lack of cohesiveness amongst the players. They’re good individually, but not as a team. Finding the right fit is paramount. Is hie our day-to-day starter? Probably not, or maybe just for now until we get our star DP striker, but i’m not of the mindset we need to constantly swing for the fence. Maybe a non-DP Josef is what we need to get on the score sheet and put asses in the seats at MBS.
As long as he can fit without a dp, we would be foolish not to take him. Gives ticket and merch sales, gives some hope and he can score. Plus I think most importantly it buys the front office time to find a young healthy eager goal scorer. Not old, angry, and injured players that their current teams are happy to see gone.