View: Tino Anjorin an inspiration for career revival after Portsmouth
Portsmouth have been credited by former loanee Tino Anjorin, who has overcome some dark days to star in Serie A this year.
The former Chelsea midfielder is now at Empoli after his loan at Fratton Park ended last summer, bringing to an end a promising but ultimately injury-ravaged spell at the club.
A clearly talented midfield operator, Anjorin bravely told BBC Sport [17 December] that his mental health was the “worst in [his] life” as he attempted to recover from an injury in which his hamstring was “five percent left hanging on”.
To see him performing in one of Europe’s undoubted top leagues is wonderful, and inspiring to many players suffering through long injury rehab processes – such as several in the current Pompey squad.
Anjorin has gone from playing on some wretched pitches in gloomy weather in League One, struggling with fitness, to dazzling – and being dazzled – in the San Siro alongside facing former Chelsea teammates Romelu Lukaku and Billy Gilmour.
Tino Anjorin thanks Portsmouth for help
Anjorin is clearly very grateful to Empoli for taking a chance on him, which the majority of clubs would not when top-flight survival is at stake.
But like Portsmouth, the Italian outfit have seen something crucial in Anjorin’s play, and the 23-year-old has made 11 appearances since signing.
The midfield man was very elegant on the ball and demonstrated an excellent footballing brain during his time at Fratton when he was fit, making 14 appearances and scoring twice in all competitions.
He thanks Pompey for the club’s help, having assured Anjorin that they wanted him for the end of the campaign and to just focus on his recovery, rather than shipping him back to an uncertain predicament at Chelsea.
He did eventually make his return in a real positive marker for his career, appearing again in the draw with Derby County on 2 April, later featuring in ‘that’ promotion contest against Barnsley at Fratton Park a fortnight later.
Anjorin is now contracted until the summer of 2027 in his new Italian surroundings, a perfect environment for the new chapter he desperately needed.
In other Portsmouth news, an analytical assessment of why the Blues must stand by Marlon Pack after the drubbing at Derby.
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