Melbourne superstar Christian Petracca has broken his silence on the "robust" conversations he held with key members of the club amid a time of frustration for the midfielder.
Petracca was noted to be upset with the club's direction in the wake of a season-ending spleen injury sustained in June. The fallout of the incident during the King's Birthday game led to a difficult period for Petracca as the Demons fell from finals contention to 14th on the ladder by the end of the season.
The club confirmed last month that Petracca, who was said to be open to assessing his options on the open market, would remain in the red and blue for the foreseeable future after working through the star's frustrations.
Speaking toย Melbourne Media,ย Petracca said he has been left satisfied with the result of "really healthy" discussions held between him and leading Melbourne figures.
"The conversations I've had over the past two or three months with the club have been really healthy," he said.
"We've had really robust discussions. I think that's awesome.
"Like any workplace or any footy club, you have these conversations throughout the year and you just want to make the environment a really good one that we love coming to work.
"I'm really looking forward to day one of pre-season, especially with my injury. I'm probably prioritising that at the moment, trying to get myself back both mentally and physically to the player and person I was."
Petracca has the green light to hit the gas on his rehab ๐ฆ๐๏ธ
Full interview + feature ๐ฅ | https://t.co/eGg0AZYXmt pic.twitter.com/CTzoG8wtp1
— Melbourne Demons (@melbournefc) September 18, 2024
Petracca, who will jet off to Austria again this off-season to train at the Red Bull Athlete Performance Centre, is eyeing a return to training on the opening day of pre-season for the club's 2025 campaign.
The Norm Smith Medal winner spoke of his excitement to be nearing a return to training after a "really frustrating" period in battling his injury.
"I've always prioritised my training, it's something I'm very passionate about and absolutely love,"
"I'm quite an active person, so not being able to train or be in a routine from a physical training point of view has been really frustrating and mentally challenging.
"It's nice I'm able to tick off those small steps and goals, and be able to focus on myself and get away.
"The bigger picture is pre-season day one."
Petracca played 13 games for the Demons in 2024 prior to his setback.
