Records, it’s said, are made to be broken. And as remarkable as his 17-year playing career was, Chris Wondolowski will recognize, deep down, that his reign as MLS’s all-time goal king will likely end sooner or later.
Still, it must be something else entirely to have the leading contender to dethrone him lurking just down the proverbial hallway, in the same organization: the San Jose Earthquakes’ strike star of the present, Josef Martínez.
The Venezuelan makes no secret of his ambitions to do exactly that.
“I always tell him that. Very respectfully, but this is a sport – we live for this,” Martínez told MLSsoccer.com in Spanish with a grin during a wide-ranging conversation this week, as he and his teammates prepare to welcome their Cali Clasico rivals LA Galaxy to Stanford Stadium on Saturday evening, always one of the Quakes’ biggest events of the year (10:30 pm ET | MLS Season Pass, Apple TV+).
“I’ve said it many times, even in conversations with Wondo. I always speak with Wondo; he’s a very good person. And we always talk about it. Every striker wants to score goals; anyone who says otherwise is a liar. So as long as I’m healthy, I honestly try to enjoy it. If I can do it, great. If not, I’ll try to do the best job possible, enjoy and be competitive until the end.”
Chasing history
With Martínez having just turned 32, already on 124 career regular-season tallies (No. 6 on the all-time list) and bagging goals at a higher rate than anyone else in the league’s top 10, Wondo’s mark of 171 might not be safe for much longer.
“Honestly, I want to be healthy, enjoy as much as possible from this sport that has given me so much,” he said. “If I get the opportunity, I welcome it; if not, possibly leave a legacy, and people can remember the competitor that I’ve been. As for the rest, I’m grateful for what I’ve had and what I’ve been given.”
That proud, relentless desire to compete, in all moments and all aspects, is central to Martínez’s identity, and it’s a key facet of what he’s brought to the Bay Area side’s dramatic turnaround under Bruce Arena. Fresh off a woeful 2024 in which they finished dead-last in the overall table, the Quakes find themselves fifth in the Western Conference with 26 points (7W-7L-5D) as the season passes its halfway point, Josef having chipped in 8g/1a in 15 matches thus far.
“In terms of my arrival, the new way of training, the new locker room, where we go to eat, all those things, it’s been great,” he said. “Beyond that, there has also been a drastic and positive change in the mentality of the players, because last year they didn’t do very well. I’ve had the chance to play against [San Jose] for many seasons now, so I’ve seen the improvement and I’ve seen the evolution they’ve had. And it’s all positive. I think the club needs it. It’s a historic club.”
Big names
It’s not just Wondo who’s in Josef’s crosshairs, to use that term in the friendliest context possible. Martínez has struck up an entertaining forward partnership with his fellow newcomer Chicho Arango, and as well as they’ve hit it off on a personal level, they’re also paced by a mutual desire to one-up the other and push the collective to higher levels. (Chicho, for the record, is currently a nose ahead with 10g/3a, in 346 more minutes on the pitch.)
“Brother, if there’s no competition, it’s not a sport. Soccer is healthy competition,” said Josef, that mischievous smile flashing again. “We both play, we’re both goal scorers, we want to score goals. But myself in this moment – and himself as well, based on the conversations we’ve had – I don’t have any feelings of selfishness towards him or any other teammate, because if they’re doing well, I’m also doing well.”
There’s something intriguingly offbeat about the old-school, famously cantankerous Arena – at 73, he is the league’s oldest head coach by more than a decade – making a fiery, historically edgy Latin American duo like Martínez and Arango cornerstones of his latest project. All three arrived on the Bay with something to prove, though.
Arena left his last job, with the New England Revolution, under a cloud due to allegations of insensitive and inappropriate remarks. Despite a best-in-class trophy case featuring five MLS Cups, four Supporters' Shields, four Sigi Schmid MLS Coach of the Year awards and myriad other achievements, some wondered if he was a spent force.
Similar doubts had swirled about Josef, laid low by a torn ACL in 2020 and only sporadically showing his best levels in the ensuing seasons with Atlanta United, Inter Miami and CF Montréal amid a string of smaller nagging injuries. Chicho, for his part, requested a trade from Real Salt Lake over the winter, seeking a “fresh start” after an MVP-caliber start to 2024 fizzled down the stretch in murky circumstances.
New start
So far, the new-look Quakes and their old-hand manager are having a blast.
“He’s a gentleman with a lot of experience. Obviously there’s a lot of respect for a person who’s won so much in this league, has so many titles and has done so many positive things,” said Martínez of Arena. “But with me personally, he’s been a very caring person, very respectful, and there have been lots of conversations on a human level. That’s something I don’t think you see a lot of.
“So we try to do things as best as possible because when he gets mad, it’s not too good,” he added with a laugh. “But honestly, we have a very good group, and that’s why things are going well for us at this moment.”
Martínez was a force of nature in Atlanta and was adored accordingly, notching more than 100 goals over six years across all competitions, highlighted by Best XI, Golden Boot and league MVP honors in the Five Stripes’ memorable march to a 2018 MLS Cup title. His status as a club icon there is assured and limits any attempt at comparisons. But he’s hopeful of making San Jose a happy home in its own right.
“I always put Atlanta aside. It has been, and still is, the place that gave me many beautiful things, many years as well. The love and affection I experienced there, I haven’t even experienced in Venezuela,” Martínez said. “Atlanta, it has a special place. For me, it’s number one, and there will never be another like it.
“But I’m very grateful to San Jose for how they’ve welcomed me at the club – not just me, but my family; my son, when he has the chance to come here. The most important thing about this club, I’ve seen it myself, is how they treat the players’ families. So I’ll go with that, how much they care and how nice that is. Because not many clubs are able to combine those things.”
If the churn of the past few years put a damper on Martínez’s spirits, he’s doing a good job of hiding it.
“We’re soccer players. Change happens every day. Today we’re here. Tomorrow, who knows?” he mused when asked about his nomadic career since leaving ATL, punctuating it with another wry chuckle. “Beyond the fact that it’s the most beautiful sport there is, it’s a job. We have to have an open mind and give our best. At the end of the day, you have to pay the bills.”
New rivalry
He can endear himself to the Quakes faithful that much faster with a big performance against the hated Galaxy on Saturday. This fixture usually draws a large, spirited crowd, and San Jose announced on Thursday afternoon that ticket sales have passed the 40,000 mark, which puts a sellout very much in play at the 50,424-capacity college football venue.
“I enjoy every weekend,” said Martínez. “I understand the rivalry between both teams. I’ve been involved in this for a long time. But we have to have fun. At the end of the day, it’s our life.
“God gives us the opportunity to do what we love most, to play soccer. And for me, it’s all the same, regardless of the opponent, beyond the fact that all cities have important rivalries. But for me, every game is difficult and important. So I play every game to win.”
That might be underselling the extent to which Josef has delighted in playing the protagonist in derbies like this one. He smiles again when it’s pointed out how expertly he antagonized ATL's primary rivals, Orlando City, against whom he memorably netted the goal that broke MLS’s single-season scoring record in ‘18.
“Yes, Orlando are my children,” he deadpanned. “And anyone who says I’m lying knows it’s not a lie. They’re my children.”
So, are the Galaxy next on that list?
“Yes, let’s hope so!” said Martínez with a laugh. “The important thing is winning. I tell the truth. If they like it, great. If not, I don’t care. I defend my colors.”
World Cup dream
Then there’s his international career.
Martínez's Quakes form earned him a recall to Venezuela’s national team this year, and with FIFA’s expansion of the World Cup, La Vinotinto – who have never in their history taken part – have their best chance ever to qualify for next summer’s big event in the US, Canada and Mexico.
“It’s the best thing that can happen to an athlete. We Venezuelans can’t say we’ve done it. I think this is the opportunity that many of us have been waiting for a long time,” said Martínez. “I think it would be something beautiful for our careers.”
With two matchdays remaining, they currently occupy seventh place in the Conmebol standings, which grants advancement to an intercontinental playoff tournament next March. Those last two matches in September are rugged tests, however: a visit to mighty Argentina, who are 10 points clear atop the table, and a home final vs. talented Colombia. Venezuela are four points back of Los Cafeteros and could still be passed by Bolivia, who sit just one point behind them.
The climb will be steep. But a chance to represent his homeland on the planet’s biggest stage – and in the nation where he became a true star? That’s the stuff Josef’s dreams are made of.
“I’d be happy to play it here in a country that has given me the possibility to enjoy so much, to experience so many good things and bad things, and has given me so much in my personal life,” he said. “Obviously, there’s a chance. We all know how difficult South American qualifiers are, they’re a f---ing nightmare.
“We have two very important games left, and both games will be very tough. But we’re in it. I don’t think we’ll have an opportunity like this again.”
Jaime Uribarri contributed to the reporting of this story.
