Martinez sets one record, closes in on another in Atlanta win

Josef Martinez can't stop scoring for Atlanta United. 

The Venezuelan scored three times on Saturday in a 3-1 win over D.C. United, securing his sixth MLS hat trick, a new record for the league. 

Atlanta trailed early on in the match, with Wayne Rooney helping spark a counterattack for D.C. that saw Zoltan Stieber put the visiting side in front inside 10 minutes. 

But Martinez was on hand to level the scored on the half-hour mark, heading home bravely to send the clubs to the break level. 

The second half would see more of Martinez. 

His second strike came 54 minutes in with a free header at the back post and he rounded out the scoring in the 73rd after a bit of good fortune. 

Despite being just over halfway through his second season in MLS Martinez has surpassed Stern John and Diego Serna, who both had five hat tricks in their time in the league, to set the record. 

Martinez has now scored 22 times in 2018 and sits just five goals shy of the MLS single-season scoring mark held by Roy Lassiter, Chris Wondolowski and Bradley Wright-Phillips. 

The forward has 12 matches left in the season to set the all-time mark.