‘Clearly needs to improve’: Former Portsmouth striker Kusini Yengi under fire after ‘terrible’ Aberdeen debut
Kusini Yengi was released by Pompey in May, bringing an end to a two-year stay at Fratton Park.
Former Premier League winner and ex-Celtic striker Chris Sutton has made it clear Kusini Yengi has to improve after a tough start to life with Aberdeen.
The 26-year-old was handed his full Dons debut on Monday evening for their Scottish Premiership curtain raiser against Hearts, which was shown live on Sky Sports.
It took just 17 minutes for the striker to have his first clear-cut chance of the game, but sliced Nicolas Milanovic’s cross onto the post.
But the real talking point came after the break, when the former Pompey man failed to convert from six-yards out, placing his effort well-wide of the mark.
The Australia international was hooked by Jimmy Thelin after 62 minutes, bringing his Aberdeen debut to a difficult end following his switch from Pompey this summer.
And speaking after the game, Sutton didn’t mince his words when giving his assessment of Yengi’s maiden outing for Aberdeen.
Kusini Yengi verdict after Aberdeen debut
The former Celtic striker said: ‘Look that’s not an easy chance (Yengi’s first attempt which hit the post), that sort of hits him as much as anything. But he's been brought in to score goals.
‘He had an injury-plagued season last year and didn’t get any goals but it’s a real conundrum for Jimmy Thelin. They found goals from all sorts of areas last season but he’s the guy who they brought to score the goals and it didn’t happen for him.
‘This one (Yengi’s second effort which went wide), he’s got to absolutely bury. He’s got to go with his head, That’s the only thing he’ll be thinking. At six yards you can not miss with your head from there.
‘There’s that margin of error if you go with your foot and it just catches him on his calf. He should still score anyway but you go with your head there - you do not miss.That’s a terrible decision from Yengi and he got hooked not long after that.
‘We are not going to judge him on one game but clearly he needs to improve. He hasn’t had a great game has he.’
Yengi wasn’t the only former Pompey man to make his Aberdeen debut on Monday evening.
The 23-year-old played the full 90 minutes at Tynecastle, with the Dons going on to fall to a 2-0 defeat.
Kusini Yengi’s Pompey departure
Yengi was released by the Blues at the end of his contract at the end of last season, after a disappointing maiden Championship campaign.
An injury-hit term saw him register just 14 outings for John Mousinho’s men, in which he failed to score any goals despite leading the line in Colby Bishop’s absence in the first three months.
Yet, the forward impressed in League One during the 2023-24 title-winning campaign, playing a key role in Pompey’s return to the Championship.
In total, the Aussie ace scored 13 goals in 45 appearances in all competitions during his two-year stay at Fratton Park before being let go by Mousinho at the end of last season.