Sydney FC will be without rising striker Dimitri Petratos for at least the first two games of their Asian Champions League campaign after the youngster was ruled out for six weeks with ankle ligament damage on Wednesday.
The 18-year-old suffered the injury early in the club’s 1-1 draw with Newcastle on Sunday after a tackle by Jets defender Tarek Elrich.
Petratos tried to play on after the tackle for a further 10 minutes but was forced from the field just before half-time.
The injury is untimely for the Sky Blues, who have also lost star striker Alex Brosque to Japanese club Shimizu S-Pulse last week.
It means the club currently have only two fit strikers in Bruno Cazarine and Juho Makela, with Mark Bridge still sidelined by a groin injury.
Petratos has enjoyed a breakthrough season at Sydney, notching 16 games after starting the campaign in the club’s National Youth League squad.
He has scored three goals and recently signed a new fulltime two-year deal with the club.
