Former Portsmouth, Middlesbrough and Shrewsbury striker sees stint abroad cut short after just six months

Curtis Main’s stint in the Indian Super League has been cut short.

The former Pompey misfit has left Bengaluru by mutual consent and returned to the Scottish Premiership by signing for Dundee - just six months after quitting Scotland for the challenge abroad.

The 31-year-old signed a one-year deal with the Sree Kanteerava Stadium side - with the club having the option of an additional 12 months - following his decision to leave St Mirren on a free transfer at the end of last season.

But both parties agreed to cancel the deal over the weekend, after Main featured just eight times for the Blues and scored twice. According to reports, the well-travelled frontman failed to meet expectations at Bengaluru, who also parted company with former Preston and Leeds boss Simon Grayson following a 4-0 defeat to Mumbai City at the beginning of December.

Main was joined in the city of Bangalore by another former Pompey player, Ryan Williams, who made the move from A-League outfit Perth Glory in July. But while the ex-Fratton favourite remains in India, Main has headed home and wasted no time in finding new employers as his move to The Dee was confirmed on Wednesday.

There, he’ll link up with former Aberdeen assistant manager Tony Docherty, who was keen on the striker following his Dens Park appointment in May. The Dons are one 10 clubs the striker has played for during a career that began at Darlington in 2007.

Pompey is another. But just like his spell in India, the bustling striker endured a frustrating spell at the Blues following his arrival for an undisclosed fee from Doncaster in the summer of 2016. Main scored six goals in 23 appearances for the club before joining Motherwell in January 2018.

Five of those strikes came during an injury-hampered maiden season that coincided with Pompey winning the League Two title. Yet the forward found himself left out of subsequent promotion festivities on Southsea Common by manager Paul Cook.

Main has spent the majority of his time since north of the border, featuring for Motherwell, Aberdeen and St Mirren - and scoring 25 league goals in 147 appearances across the three clubs. Meanwhile, he had a 20-game stint at Shrewsbury over the second half of the 2020-21 season, scoring twice in 20 appearances.

Dundee sit seventh in Scotland’s top flight. Main could be handed his Dee debut against Kilmarnock on Saturday.