Across the Hyundai A-League, there’s one man who’s creating chances and doing it better than the rest.
That man is Dimi Petratos.
Despite the Jets scoring at a rate lower than the one they enjoyed last season, Petratos has been enjoying a purple patch of form.
The attacker created a whopping 26 chances in his nine appearances so far this season, including five ‘big chances’ – he leads the league in both of those statistics.
It’s a six-way tie for the most assists at this stage in the season across the league, but Dimi Petratos has worked his way into that tight race with three of his own.
Laying on chances isn’t the only thing Dimi is doing well, he’s also been amongst everything else the Jets are doing moving forward.
He’s had 636 touches of the ball, the 2nd most in the Jets side behind Daniel Georgievski, and has completed a whopping 398 passes at an accuracy of 81.9%.
The winger has fired off 36 shots so far this season and leads the Jets in that particular column, but to date has scored just the one – a 95th minute strike against Wellington back in Round 1.
Petratos has also played every single minute for the Jets so far this season.
It’s an incredible spell of form which hasn’t been lost on Jets boss, Ernie Merrick.
“Dimi is a marked player now, but he’s still getting shots on target. A lot of his shots are blocked, but it’s very much because he’s marked,” Merrick said.
“Defences are also a lot more wary of Newcastle, but we’re still creating all of those chances and to me, Dimi is playing some of his best football.
“When you’re a proven player, there’s a lot more attention paid to you which is a backhanded compliment.
“I’ve found this season that he’s a much more complete player and his work rate is increasing. Dimi’s making tackles in the defensive third, creating in the middle third, and springing forward again in the front third.”
