Melbourne Demons speak out to address bombshell trade reports around Christian Petracca

The Melbourne Demons have released a club statement to address bombshell trade reports around Christian Petracca, amid suggestions he has become disillusioned with the AFL club and "would likely ask for a trade tomorrow" if he didn't have a long-term contract. Petracca is continuing to recover after suffering broken ribs, a lacerated spleen and punctured lung against Collingwood in June. He won't play again this season.

But Demons CEO Gary Pert wrote an open letter to the club's fans on Tuesday to insist they have no intention of releasing the superstar before the end of his current deal, which still has another five years to run. "Christian is an integral and much-loved member of the Melbourne Football Club," the Demons CEO said. "He is a key pillar of our club’s future, and we value him immensely, not only as a player, but as a person and a leader.

"He has been an important member of our football program since he walked through the doors in 2014 and is contracted until the end of the 2029 season. He will remain in the red and blue until at least the end of his contract and hopefully beyond."

The statement comes after Channel 9’s Tom Morris reported Petracca had become disenchanted with the direction the Demons were going in and that the premiership winner would seek a move away if he didn't have five years left to run on his current deal. “Christian Petracca is disgruntled and particularly disillusioned with the club’s direction,” Morris reported.

“Petracca’s a pro, he’s desperate for another flag, but he has become increasingly unhappy in the wake of his season-ending spleen injury. His disenchantment — which is not directed at the coach (Simon Goodwin), it must be said — has now become so palpable that if he was out of contract, the four-time All-Australian would likely ask for a trade tomorrow."

Petracca admitted in June that he was "frustrated" by his injury situation but insisted it was not directed at the club. That came after the midfield gun initially played on through the pain of injuries “likened to a car crash”, with no one - Petracca included - realising the extent of the problems at the time. The Demons ace addressed reports that his family weren't happy with the club over their handling of his injuries, with the 28-year-old dismissing that theory.

The Demons have slipped from a 7-5 win-loss record to 10-11 in the weeks since Petracca's injury nightmare to completely drop out of finals contention this season. It's a sad situation for the 2021 premiers who have been a mainstay in the AFL's top four since their most recent flag. Morris did admit that it was "basically impossible" to imagine the Demons letting one of their best players leave when he still has five years left on his current deal.

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Garry Lyon stunned by new Christian Petracca reports

Melbourne great Garry Lyon said he was shocked to hear the reports from Morris while discussing the situation on AFL 360 on Monday night. But the Demons legend insists that he will not be "troubled" by the development until he hears the concerns expressed by the player himself.

“I’d need to hear that from Christian. It’s the first I’ve heard of it,” Lyon said. “I’m not troubled by it until I hear it from Christian, OK? If I could eyeball Christian Petracca and say ‘you signed a seven-year deal for $1.2 (million), they’ve taken you to the promised land, they’ve set you up for life and now you want to get out?’ Then I’d be troubled.”

Petracca's family were understood to be unhappy with the club's handling of his injuries and the decision to allow him to play on in the immediate aftermath. But Petracca insisted he doesn't hold any ill-will towards the club's doctors or staff. “Hindsight’s a great thing,” he said. “Had we known it was a grade five spleen and four fractured ribs, I don’t think anyone would have let me back on the field - and neither myself, to be honest.

“I’m a competitor - I want to go back out there and try and compete. There’s so much adrenaline going through the situation - 85,000 people (watching), playing against Collingwood in a big game - I think, in that situation, had I known it was a grade five spleen, there’s no way in hell I’d be going back out there, because we didn’t understand the severity of the injury at the time."