Washington, March 19: Atlanta United star Josef Martinez's knee surgery was a success, the Major League Soccer team has said.

The Atlanta United forward tore the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee on February 29 when Atlanta defeated Nashville 2-1 in the team's opener of the season. But the season is now on hold because of the coronavirus outbreak, reports Xinhua news agency.

United said that Martinez will now return to Atlanta to begin his rehabilitation, which will be led by the Atlanta United medical team.

"In the midst of the crisis we are all living through, we need to think about and take care of each other, just wanted to share that I'm blessed that my knee surgery today went well," Martinez confirmed on social media.

Martinez has tallied 77 goals in 84 MLS matches since entering the league for United's debut season in 2017. The team won the 2018 MLS title in just its second season.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 19, 2020 03:38 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).