‘I’m a confident kid’: Socceroos newcomer backs himself as the next Tim Cahill

“It will be me,” vows Kusini Yengi.

Case closed, then.

For years, the Socceroos have been searching for a striker to fill Tim Cahill’s empty boots: someone strong, tall and quick, a reliable source of goals in the air and on the ground, someone who can reach into a bag of tricks and pull out a clever one-on-one move to skip past an opponent, but also a player who can link up with his teammates and bring them into the attack.

Kusini Yengi reckons he’s the striker Australia has been waiting for.Credit: Nikki Short

The search can be called off right now, according to the latest guy asked to fill the brief. We’ve found him. He’s here.

Time will, of course, be the arbiter. But Yengi, 25, is brimming with the sort of confidence all good strikers possess. It’s not quite full-blown arrogance – but it’s as close as you can get without ticking over.

Fans of the A-League will know that from the time he ripped out a Conor McGregor-style strut in front of Melbourne Victory fans after scoring for Adelaide United, or from the time he took off his shirt and paraded his name to Sydney FC fans during a derby win with the Wanderers.

Kusini Yengi leads the celebrations after a Sydney derby win for the Wanderers in 2022.Credit: Getty

And now fans of Portsmouth, who are leading the race for promotion from England’s League One, know it. Yengi has brought his dance moves with him to the fallen Premier League giants, for whom he’s bagged 11 goals in 24 appearances since moving there this season.

He scored a cheeky Panenka penalty, too, in his penultimate outing before joining the Socceroos for their two-match World Cup qualifying window against Lebanon. They face the Cedars again on Tuesday night at Canberra’s GIO Stadium, where only standing room tickets remain – the first time they’ve been made available in five years.

Not since Cahill’s retirement in 2018 has Australia had a No.9 who made people get out of their seats; that’s with due respect to players such as Mitchell Duke and Jamie Maclaren, who have filled in with varying levels of success, but only tick some of the boxes.

Yengi is fully aware of the size of the opportunity coach Graham Arnold has put in front of him, having only made his Socceroos debut in November before earning his first start against Uzbekistan at the Asian Cup. Allow him to go through his own boxes.

“It will be me,” he said. “I think it will be me. I’ve got the physicality, I’ve got the speed, I’ve got the skill, I’ve got the technique.

Kusini Yengi has very quickly become a fan favourite at Portsmouth.Credit: Getty

“I’m a confident kid. I back myself and believe in my abilities, and I think I’ve shown that in training and in games. That’s why [Arnold] brought me into the squad. I think he sees it like that as well.”

The son of a renowned refugee advocate and academic from South Sudan, Yengi was born in Adelaide, grew up a massive AFL fan and was a relative latecomer to the world game. He was inspired by the feats of Socceroos winger Awer Mabil, whose emergence from South Australia’s African community has similarly paved the way for the likes of Nestory Irankunda and the three Toure brothers, Al Hassan, Mohamed and Musa.

The only question mark over Yengi is his brittle body, which consistently broke down during his time in the A-League. He believes has become stronger and more durable since adjusting to the added demands of English football.

You should see his brother, too.

If you think Kusini Yengi is a specimen, you should see his younger brother Tete, now with Livingston in Scotland.Credit: Getty

Tete, 23, grew up being manhandled by Kusini in their Adelaide backyard, but these days he’s nine centimetres taller and on a similar trajectory in club football, having made a storming start to life in Scotland after switching from Ipswich Town to Livingston earlier this year.

“I used to bully him a bit,” Kusini said. “But maybe he’s a little bit technically better than me? I don’t know. We’re different players but also quite similar as well. But he’s a beast, man. And honestly, I don’t see why he can’t be here soon, playing with me or playing together. That would be awesome.”

If Yengi does get the nod to lead the Socceroos’ attack again against Lebanon, he will have a different-looking team behind him, with midfielder Keanu Baccus suspended, and  Jordan Bos and Riley McGree both injured.

Arnold has flagged making four to five changes to his starting team, and said Patrick Yazbek, the former Sydney FC midfielder who now plays for Viking FK in Norway, is a strong chance to make his international debut.

Yazbek, who is of Lebanese descent, was courted by the Cedars to switch his allegiance but turned them down. Lebanon coach Miodrag Radulovic said: “I think he’s better to be one of the leaders in our team than sitting on the bench [for Australia]. But this is his decision”

Either a win or draw will secure Australia’s spot in the next round of World Cup qualifying, which begins in September, with two matches to spare.

Watch every match of the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and UEFA Europa Conference League on Stan Sport. All the action streaming ad-free, live and on demand, with select matches in 4K UHD.