Mar 18, 2017; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta United forward Josef Martinez (7) celebrates a goal against the Chicago Fire in the second half at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Historic Grant Field. Atlanta United FC won 4-0. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

Atlanta United forward Josef Martinez has already proven to be a dangerous goal scorer in Major League Soccer, scoring five goals in three appearances.

UPDATE: Atlanta United confirmed the permanent transfer of Josef from Torinio on Tuesday.

The past two matches couldn’t have gone better for Atlanta United, the club has outscored their opponents 10-1 and have recovered from their opening weekend loss to the New York Red Bulls quite well. They are firing on all cylinders offensively, and Martinez has scored five of their eleven goals thus far. He’s the leading scorer in the MLS and has intrigued the entire league with his goal scoring prowess over the past two weekends.

Breakaway man

A quick look at Martinez’s highlight reel will reveal multiple breakaway goals, the forward has excelled in one v. one situations and has scored with devastating efficiency. Take this example against Minnesota United in Match Week Two:

The Venezuelan finishes as cool as you like, rounding the keeper and sending it home. Here’s another example from this past weekend against the Chicago Fire:

Martínez marca su doblete y pone el 4-0 ante el Fire. pic.twitter.com/6F4pJwIH07 — Univision Deportes (@UnivisionSports) March 18, 2017

He gets in behind the defense with a perfectly timed run and scores from an angle. This seems like a routine finish, but the coolness and composure he displays is simply fantastic.

Help from teammates

Martinez appears to have found great chemistry with his teammates as Miguel Almiron as already assisted on a hand full of the forward’s five goals. Additionally, rookie Julian Gressel and Yamil Asad have been working well to feed the forward what he needs to work with to score. He has gotten in and behind defenses with ease at times and that is due large in part to the accuracy and timing of his runs, but the passing has to be given credit as well.

Big test on the horizon

With Atlanta’s next four matches being away from home, the need for Martinez will be ever present. They face the defending 2016 MLS champions and MLS runners-up in the coming weeks. If he can produce a repeat performance of the past two weeks, then he should be an early front-runner for MVP. He could very well be the key to how far Atlanta United go in their inaugural season.