Building the ‘ultimate player’: Meet the Socceroos’ answer to Frankenstein’s monster

Oakland: Tete Yengi is a footballing version of Frankenstein’s monster. And not just because he’s a big, imposing lump of a bloke who is actually much quieter, thoughtful and nuanced than first impressions may suggest - but because he describes himself as a composite player, made up of the sum of his experiences in the game, good and bad.

It’s been a long, winding journey for him to get to Camp Socceroo, and it featured a bunch of pit-stops off the beaten path in pursuit of his dream.

Five years ago, Yengi was playing semi-professional football in South Australia, having failed to make the cut at Adelaide United in his youth. Three years ago he was on loan in Finland, searching for an opportunity at the end of the earth. Less than a year ago he was in the Scottish second division, and the prospect of a World Cup appearance at that moment seemed absurd.

That was until he moved to J-League club Machida Zelvia in Tokyo.

Everywhere he’s been, he’s picked up something different and added it to his game. Now, Yengi hopes, his collection is complete, and he is ready to become a well-rounded player who his national team can depend on at this World Cup.

“Growing up, I was always thinking pretty football, maybe: I want the ball to the feet, I want to dribble, these kinds of things,” he said, speaking after Australia’s first training session at their “base camp” in Oakland, California.

“Going on all these different adventures helped me learn different parts of the game: different coaches, different teammates, different styles of play. Going through difficult times, those things all shape you. Having different coaches can help shape you as well.

“[I’ve been] kind of putting that all together and building the ultimate player. I feel like I’ve taken a bit from every place I’ve been to, and that’s helped me to be who I am today.”

Tete is the younger brother of 27-time Socceroo Kusini Yengi, and they share similar traits: both are tall, broad-shouldered forwards who, because of their build, are typecast as classic target men, even though deep down they probably think of themselves as wingers, or creative types. They’re both quicker than they look, and much harder workers than their languid gaits might suggest.

That is perhaps why things weren’t quite working out for Yengi at Livingston, the unfashionable Scottish club who he helped seal promotion to the top flight last season. He was allowed to leave on loan in January to Japanese club Machida Zelvia, and some Livingston fans were happy to see him go. But the move has turned out to be life-changing; his footbal