View: Koby Mottoh signed by Bournemouth as flawed youth set-up haunts Portsmouth
Former Portsmouth prospect Koby Mottoh has joined AFC Bournemouth following his release from Fratton Park.
As shared by BBC reporter Andrew Moon on X [11 July], the teenage forward has signed a professional contract with the Cherries after Pompey let all of their second-year scholars leave the club in the summer.
Mottoh made five senior appearances in blue, all in the EFL Trophy and Hampshire Cup, but after being deemed unprepared for first-team football, he reluctantly bid his farewells amid the difficulty of no Under-21 side at the club.
Bournemouth snap up former Portsmouth starlet
After the number of teenagers released by Portsmouth rose into double figures following the end of each Under-18 player’s two-year scholarship, Mottoh was kept around for further evaluation.
Pompey ultimately decided the exciting forward player was going to struggle for first-team minutes this season following the club’s promotion, and he will now be nurtured in Bournemouth’s Under-21 setup.
This is where the issue lies for the Blues – losing talent to other clubs around the South Coast because the youth system and professional development phase is incomplete.
For all the fantastic investment ploughed into the club of late, the lack of a bridge between academy and first-team football at Fratton Park means the Blues often lose out, a point made clear by David Norris last week.
Mottoh’s standout moment in a Portsmouth shirt was his goal on home turf in a 5-2 rout of bitter rivals Southampton in the Hampshire Cup as two youthful sides battled it out in October 2022.
Unfortunately for Pompey fans, that is the last they will be seeing of him in the club’s colours – for now, at least.
In other Portsmouth news, a BBC broadcaster has made an interesting Pompey reference after Ollie Watkins’ historic England winner against the Netherlands.
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