Charles Petro

Charles Petro
Personal information
Full name John Charles Petro
Date of birth (2001-02-08) 8 February 2001 (age 23)
Place of birth Blantyre, Malawi
Height 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
 Botoșani
Number 28
Youth career
–2018 PremierBet Wizards
2018–2019 Big Bullets
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2017–2018 PremierBet Wizards
2018–2019 Big Bullets Reserves
2019–2020 Big Bullets
2020–2022 Sheriff Tiraspol 43 (2)
2023– Botoșani 34 (0)
International career‡
2017–2018 Malawi U20
2019– Malawi 31 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 13 December 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 18 November 2024

John Charles Petro (born 8 February 2001) is a Malawian professional footballer who plays as a defender for Liga I club Botoșani and the Malawi national team.

Club career

Petro joined Big Bullets in 2018, initially playing with their reserve squad in the second-tier Southern Region Football League before being promoted to the first team ahead of the 2019 season, making an instant impact and playing an instrumental role in their second consecutive Super League championship win.[1] For his performance filling in the gap left by injured team captain John Lanjesi,[2] he was named Defender of the Year while also being nominated for the Player of the Year award at the annual league awards ceremony.[3]

After rejecting a trial with South African side Polokwane City, Petro instead underwent a month-long trial at Moldovan side Sheriff Tiraspol in early 2020.[1] He officially made the move to the club by signing a three-year deal in February.[4]

On 7 March 2023, Petro signed with Romanian Liga I club Botoșani on a two-year deal.[5][6] At the time, he was one of only two Malawian footballers playing in Europe, along with Kieran Ngwenya.[6] Petro made his debut for Botoșani in a 1–1 league draw against Mioveni on 10 March.[6]

International career

Petro represented the Malawi national under-20 football team at the 2017 COSAFA U-20 Cup and during the 2019 Africa U-20 Cup of Nations qualifiers.[7][8]

He made his senior international debut on 20 April 2019, replacing Gomezgani Chirwa during a 0–0 draw against Eswatini in the 2020 African Nations Championship qualifiers.[9] He also played for Malawi at the 2019 COSAFA Cup and 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification.[10][11]

Career statistics

International

As of match played 18 November 2024[9]
National team Year Apps Goals
Malawi
2019 10 0
2020 4 0
2021 10 0
2022 3 0
2023 3 0
2024 2 0
Total 32 0

Honours

Club

Big Bullets

Sheriff Tiraspol

Individual

References

  1. ^ a b Fote, Peter (14 January 2020). "Charles Petro heads to Moldova". The Daily Times. Archived from the original on 12 January 2023. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  2. ^ Mpando, Blessings. "Charles Petro to have Moldova trials". malawichampion.com. Retrieved 14 March 2020.[permanent dead link‍]
  3. ^ Manda, Solomon (19 January 2020). "Bullets dominate TNM Super League awards". The Nation. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  4. ^ Gondwa, Williams (13 February 2020). "Petro ignites fire". The Daily Times. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
  5. ^ Grigore, Daniel (7 March 2023). "De la o campioană din Europa direct în SuperLigă! Au prezentat astăzi jucătorul cu 27 de meciuri în națională". Gazeta Sporturilor (in Romanian). Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  6. ^ a b c "Debut delight for Petro". The Nation. 14 March 2023. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  7. ^ "Malawi U-20 off to Zambia for COSAFA tournament". Nyasa Times. 2 December 2017. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  8. ^ "25 players make U-20 final squad". Malawi24. 13 March 2018. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  9. ^ a b Charles Petro at National-Football-Teams.com
  10. ^ Tembo, Arkangel (24 May 2019). "Mwase names Flames final squad for Cosafa". Malawi News Agency. Retrieved 14 March 2020.[permanent dead link‍]
  11. ^ Chilapondwa, Andrew Cane (11 September 2019). "Future looks bright: Malawi to use young squad in qualifiers". Malawi24. Retrieved 14 March 2020.