Atlético Ottawa has had a busy couple of weeks, during which they announced the return of four players, including Spanish veteran Alberto Zapater on New Year’s Eve, and the transfer of Matteo de Brienne to the Swedish club Göteborgs Atlet- och Idrottssällskap (better known as GAIS).
Zapater began his professional career with his hometown club, Real Zaragoza, where he became known as El Toro (the Bull), for his strong tackling. He left Spain for several seasons, playing in Italy for Genoa, in Portugal for Sporting CP, and in Russia with Lokomotiv Moscow, before returning to Zaragoza in 2016.
Having joined Atlético Ottawa in June 2023, he was named one of the club’s captains this past season, and returns on a one-year contract.
de Brienne, who began playing soccer with Ottawa South United as a child, was signed by Atlético Ottawa in July 2020, though he did not make any appearances during the short season. He spent the 2021 season with Carleton University before signing with Valour FC the following January. After two seasons in Winnipeg, winning the CPL Best Canadian U-21 Player of the Year award in the second, he returned to Ottawa and Atlético for this past season.
Atlético also revealed last week that the club had exercised options to retain defender Amer Didić and forward Sam Salter for the 2025 season, while they announced a three-year contract extension for 20-year-old Gabriel Antinoro on Christmas Eve.
Didić, who was named Player of the Year by the Capital City Supporters Group following the 2024 season, has twice featured with the Canadian Men’s National Team and been a top defender throughout the CPL’s six seasons. After three seasons with FC Edmonton and two with Pacific FC, he joined Ottawa in April last year.
Having joined Ottawa from the Halifax Wanderers in 2023, the 24-year-old Salter has been one of the team’s top scorers, with 12 goals in 55 league games. Though his total playing time decreased last season, he made promising strides on the left-wing, showing increased versatility.
A former CF Montréal academy prospect, Antinoro signed with Ottawa in 2023, making his professional debut that season, later scoring the second-fastest goal in league history, 22 seconds into the match. Still qualifying for the CPL’s domestic under-21 requirements this season, he will likely be expected to play a bigger role going forward.
