Ulises Davila may have produced arguably his best performance in a Macarthur FC jersey but Bulls coach Ante Milicic fears the Mexican ace is at risk of literally being booted out of the A-League Men competition.
Davila was sensational in Macarthur's 4-1 thumping of Adelaide United at Campbelltown Stadium on Saturday, having a role in three of the Bulls' goals as Milicic's team secured a much-needed first win in 2022.
The captain's domination of midfield and link up play with English winger Craig Noone and Socceroos forward Apostolos Giannou would've delighted Milicic, as his team ended a five-game winless run in style.
What he didn't like was the cynical approach opponents are taking towards the playmaker --- something that was a regular occurrence during Davila's time at Wellington Phoenix where he was among the most-fouled players in the league.
"We lost Uli in the Central Coast game through injury. I understand he is an excellent attacking player and the opposition target him but he just gets kicked way too often," Milicic told AAP.
"That's part of the game, I understand, but all we're just asking for is a little bit more protection.
"We've already lost him once this season through injury and it's a shame because we bring these kind of players to our country and you can see now that he's starting to get a lot more fitter, his timing's better, he's starting to get a bit more connection now with Apo (Giannou) also and with Nooney (Craig Noone).
"He's getting back to that form he showed in the early parts of the season.
"So we're delighted to have him but we have to make sure that we keep him on the park for an extended period of time because we're a better footballing team with our skipper on the park."
The Bulls have a short turnaround before facing Perth in Tasmania on Wednesday and will have to do so without midfield creator Daniel De Silva who came off early in the second-half against Adelaide with what could be a serious hamstring injury.
