San Antonio FC announced on Monday afternoon that the club and Defender Amer Didic have mutually agreed to part ways. Didic had not played since the second game of the season and had not even been available for selection the last two games. The move is somewhat surprising given that his signing was seen as one of the biggest of the off-season for San Antonio FC despite his limited role on the field thus far.
San Antonio wasn't the only ones. League analysis from USL Championship named Didic one of the top ten signings of the off-season earlier this year.
And here in San Antonio, he was the lead guest on the new team-produced Podcast, Behind the Stripes.
Didic arrived from the Sporting KC organization and was announced on December 18, 2018 as a SAFC signing. He arrived with several accolades. In three seasons with USL Championship side Swope Park Rangers, Didic appeared in 84 total matches leading his team to two USL Championship matches, and earning All-League First Team honors in 2016. Didic also took part in 27 shutouts over his three seasons with the USL side. In addition, Didic made four appearances with Sporting KC in U.S. Open Cup and CONCACAF Champions League matches.
Unfortunately, he never came close to that level of success in San Antonio. In two appearances this season, SAFC gave up 3 goals in each match. While it's certainly unfair to pin all of that on Didic, something wasn't working. Defenders Joshua Yaro and Eby Ackon were both on the field for each of those three goal matches and they also were on the field this past Saturday when SAFC earned their first shutout of the season.
Manager Darren Powell issued a short quote via a team press release, saying “The club would like to thank Amer for his contributions to the club, and wish him well in his future soccer endeavors."
With the loss of Didic on the back line and Midfielder Leeroy Maguraushe to injury in the span of a week, SAFC might be on the hunt for a roster addition or two.
It will also be interesting to see where Didic lands this season - from the SAFC perspective, hopefully not in USL West.
Didic joins the ranks of other SAFC players who have had surprising early season exits such as Kris Tyrpak, Shawn Chin, and AJ Ajeakwa.
San Antonio FC faces Real Monarchs on the road this Saturday night.
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