A major blow for the future of the Wellington Phoenix appears to be in the works with reports that star captain Ulises Davila is heading to a rival A-League club.
Multiple Australian outlets are reporting the Mexican wiz has signed a lucrative AU$2million deal with Macarthur FC that will keep him at the club through 2025.
Newshub understands the Phoenix were close to re-signing the 30-year-old, but couldn't match a final offer from Macarthur that will make Davila one of the A-League's highest-paid players.
Davila will command around $750,000 per year according to The World Game, for the league's newest club, which is currently in contention for post-season football in its first season.
Arriving in Wellington at the start of last season, Davila has netted 19 goals and 10 assists in 48 appearances for the Kiwi club, and is regarded as one of the league's elite attacking talents.
Bulls sporting and operations director Sam Krslovic told The World Game: "We are always interested in a high-quality player such as Ulises, but we're not in a position to comment due to the fact we're at the tail end of the season.
"That would be disrespectful."
Davila has been linked to several A-League clubs, with his contract up at the end of the season, and his final campaign for the Nix could come to a premature end.
The Mexican youth international is dealing with a hamstring complaint and there are fears it will keep him out of the club's push for an unlikely playoff spot.
The World Game also reports Davila's teammate Cameron Devlin is on his way out of Wellington.
The former Sydney FC junior star is off-contract at the end of the campaign and is set to depart to Melbourne Victory under new coach Tony Popovic.
