Now Jets’ Petratos is really taking off
THE Dimitri Petratos in the Socceroos squad this week is the same as the 17-year-old who seemed set for great things at Sydney FC eight years ago – with one crucial difference.
Nicky Carle watched Petratos at training every day at Sydney, and believes confidence is the missing ingredient that has driven Petratos to the cusp of a World Cup.
Called into Bert van Marwijk’s first Australian squad in Oslo this week, on the back of a brilliant season for Newcastle, Petratos has taken the long route to national recognition – but even eight years ago Carle had no doubt of his potential.
“With any young player, confidence goes a long way,” Carle said. “That goes both ways, confidence in yourself and feeling the coach has confidence in you.
“In terms of ability, Dimi had it all. He uses both feet and at training you couldn’t move him onto his weaker foot as he didn’t have one.
“He was a young kid with enormous potential. Unfortunately things didn’t work out at STANDOUT: Dimitri Petratos of the Jets has impressed enough to get a Socceroos call-up. the club for him but I believe the right people weren’t there to make the best use of him.”
Petratos had announced himself under Vitezslav Lavicka with a thunderbolt strike against Gold Coast United while on a youth team contract, but left Sydney 18 months later after a row with assistant coach Zeljko Kalac. He played in Malaysia before Brisbane and Korea.
This season he has been the focal point of Ernie Merrick’s rebuilt Jets side that has attracted plaudits, and managed to be one of a handful of A-League players to impress van Marwijk enough to earn a call-up.
With only the games against Norway on Saturday (AEDT) and Colombia next week to come before van Marwijk chooses his Socceroos World Cup squad, Petratos’s timing is as well judged as it is on the pitch.
“This is a starting point for Dimi now, he looks like his best years are ahead of him,” Carle said. WITH Sydney FC’s dominant spell seemingly coming to an end the Newcastle Jets heaped more pressure on the champions with a 1-0 victory against the Phoenix.
The win puts the Jets within five points of Sydney with four games remaining, which will make for a very interesting final few matches.
The announcement of Graham Arnold as Socceroos coach before the season has even finished has said to have unsettled the dressing room, coupled with a very poor run in the Asian Champions league all of a sudden cracks are starting to appear.
Arnold and Sydney have found themselves in a hole and it will take all of his managerial skills to stop the wheels from completely falling off.
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