View: Portsmouth boss John Mousinho may have no choice but to axe 29% Kusini Yengi v Blackburn
Portsmouth manager John Mousinho will surely have no choice but to axe Kusini Yengi from his starting XI for Saturday’s trip to Blackburn Rovers.
The Australian forward has started in the last three Championship fixtures before the international break but faces a tight turnaround to be ready for the Ewood Park contest on 23 November.
The 25-year-old could feature in a World Cup qualifier for the Australians against Bahrain on Tuesday and may not land back in the UK until Thursday 21 November.
Portsmouth need Kusini Yengi to step up
Portsmouth currently sit 23rd in the Championship just three points from safety with a lot of the season still to be played.
If the Fratton Park club are to survive they need Yengi to add goals to his game, something which he has been lacking so far since the club was promoted as highlighted by Mousinho on November 9.
It is clear that he has the ability, he scored nine goals in 26 appearances as Pompey secured the League One title last season and has scored four goals in nine matches for his country.
However, Yengi has struggled in front of goal so far this season taking just 1.81 shots per 90 minutes which ranks in the bottom 30 per cent of Championship attackers and he also has only created 0.11xG, which ranks in the bottom four per cent [Fotmob].
His creative stats are a lot more encouraging, he is in the top 95 per cent for chances created with 1.58 per 90 and boasts a cross-success ratio of 0.23, which is in the top 83 per cent.
Yengi is also getting into the right positions and has shown that he can beat his man, ranking in the top 75 per cent for touches in the opposition box (4.75) and successful dribbles (0.90).
He only won 29 per cent of his aerial duels in the win over Preston last time out, taking one shot on goal as he looked better helping his teammates.
The Australian just needs to rediscover his composure in front of goal and if he can, he could fire his side to safety, just not potentially at Ewood Park as he races against the clock to be involved in training beforehand.
In other Portsmouth news, David Norris has criticised Yengi for comments he made last week.
For more Portsmouth news, follow us on Facebook or join our brand new WhatsApp Channel for instant updates to be sent straight to your phone.