Former Portsmouth favourite Kusini Yengi suffers fresh blow amid Aberdeen attempts to offload striker
Kusini Yengi has has an unfortunate time since Pompey decided to release him at the end of the 2024-25 season
Kusini Yengi’s post-Pompey career has suffered yet another blow.
The striker, who has been restricted to just 14 appearances following his Fratton Park exit in the summer of 2024, has been allowed to leave loan side Cerezo Osaka and head back to parent club Aberdeen.
The J-League outfit have decided not to take up the option of signing the 27-year-old on a permanent arrangement following a injury-plagued five-months at the Yodoko Sakura Stadium.
Yengi suffered a thigh injury that required surgery after just four appearances for Osaka, with his last outing coming against V-Varen Nagasaki at the end of February.
The Socceroos international totalled just 56 minutes of football for Arthur Papas’ side, all of which came as a substitute, and will now return to Pittorie, where he is contracted until 2028.
There, the former Fratton favourite will continue his rehabilitation and will not link up with manager Stephen Robinson’s side in Holland as the Dons ramp up their pre-season preparations.
It’s understood Yengi is keen for a reset with the Scottish Premiership side after quickly falling out of favour under previous manager Jimmy Thelin.
Yet it’s been reported Aberdeen remain keen to move the former Western Sydney Wanderers frontman on after just 10 appearances and one goal for the club.
That will no doubt alert clubs in League One - a division Yengi took by storm during the first year of his two-year stay at PO4 when he scored nine goals in 26 third-tier appearances.
Back in January, Stockport, Stevenage, Wigan and Blackpool were all linked with the striker before he opted for a move to Japan.
There remains interest in Yengi from within the J League, despite Osaka’s decision to part company with Yengi.
However, the centre-forward prefers to continue his career in Europe.
What’s happened to Kusini Yengi since leaving Pompey
Yengi played a key role in Pompey’s 2023-24 League One title-winning season, contributing nine league goals and 13 in all competitions during a memorable maiden campaign in English football.
A combination of injuries and poor form saw him feature just 14 times for John Mousinho’s side in 2024-25 without registering a goal.
A move to Aberdeen followed, with the 11-times-capped Socceroos international signing a three-year deal upon his switch to Pittodrie.
But life north of the border soon turned sour. Yengi found himself out of favour under Thelin within weeks of the 2025-26 season starting and was limited to just 10 appearances and one goal, before being handed an opportunity to resurrect his career by fellow Aussie Papas in Japan.
Injury prevented Yengi from making the most of the latest opportunity to come his way.
And with the door seemingly closed on him to redeem himself at Pittodrie, it will be interesting to see what other opportunities come his way in the coming months.
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