The forward made an impact in the FA Cup victory over Shrewsbury Town.
Toni Martinez has had to be very patient for opportunities to impress in the first-team at West Ham United, but the young striker certainly seized his opportunity in the FA Cup third round replay victory over Shrewsbury Town last night.
West Ham prevailed with a hard-fought 1-0 victory at London Stadium and Martinez, who was involved from the outset, had an important part to play as he set up Reece Burke’s winner in the 112th minute.
Martinez has consistently impressed for West Ham at U23 level this season, scoring nine goals in 13 appearances, but he has yet to feature in the Premier League for David Moyes’ side.
Given a rare opportunity to impress against Shrewsbury, Martinez demonstrated what he is capable of as he linked up play effectively and frequently got into dangerous attacking areas.
There is still much work for Martinez to do in order to convince Moyes that he deserves regular playing time in the Premier League, but the 20-year-old’s display against Shrewsbury was certainly a significant step in his development.
West Ham will face Wigan Athletic or Bournemouth away in the fourth round of the FA Cup and Martinez will certainly hope to be involved in that fixture as he continues in his quest to make the breakthrough at the club.
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