Linvoy Primus: Yoshi Kawaguchi couldn't get a game at Portsmouth - so Graham Rix was instructed by the chairman to pick him

The Japanese goalkeeper was a £1.8m capture from Yokohama Marinos in October 2001, yet concerns over his ability meant he was kept out of the Blues side by 42-year-old Dave Beasant.

However, in November 2001, Kawaguchi was granted his debut for a Division One trip to Sheffield Wednesday.

In a 2017 interview for Played Up Pompey Too, Primus reflected on how Rix had no choice but to comply with the wishes of the club’s owner for that Hillsborough fixture.

‘That 2001-02 season had also seen the arrival of Yoshi Kawaguchi and I felt for him. I wouldn’t say Graham Rix didn’t want him – he definitely didn’t want him! It was out of his hands, though,’ he told Played Up Pompey Too.

‘Some of us took the Japanese goalkeeper under our wing, inviting him into our homes to get to know our families, trying to help him integrate and learn English.

‘Lee Bradbury and I were particularly big on that, each having him around once a week so he wasn’t alone.

‘Bradders would take Yoshi to London sightseeing and Japanese tourists often stopped and asked for pictures.

‘On one occasion, we visited Old Thorns Golf & Spa Hotel, in Liphook. There used to be a Japanese restaurant there and the cook was absolutely delighted to meet him.

‘Yoshi lived on his own in a Port Solent flat and early every morning trained at the David Lloyd Club gym, afterwards eating a chicken burger for breakfast.

‘And do you know why he ordered a chicken burger? Because it was on the menu and he didn’t have that advice not to eat it. It wasn’t the greatest thing to have before training.

‘In terms of the football, it was a bad time for Yoshi. Dave Beasant was in the first-team and flying, so he couldn’t get a look in.

‘Then we travelled to Sheffield Wednesday in November 2001 and in the dressing room before the game Rixy revealed he had been told by the chairman to play Yoshi!

‘Beasant had already been taken to one side and informed of the decision, while we knew if Rixy hadn’t agreed to the request he would have been sacked.

‘I felt sorry for Rixy at that point, that is when it was clear who really was pulling the strings. I’ll tell you now, Harry Redknapp wouldn’t have had it, no way.

‘So 10 minutes before the game we were teaching Yoshi how to say ‘Keeper’s ball’ through this translator in the changing room - then 26 seconds into the match he’s picking the ball out of the net after Simon Donnelly scored!

‘We went on to win 3-2, with two goals from Peter Crouch and one from Neil Barrett - and for Yoshi it kicked off a run of 12 successive matches in the side.

‘Grimsby away was the one, though, when twice he was at fault from corners and ended up conceding as we lost 3-1. At that point the players began to lose faith in him.

‘The following match saw Division Three side Leyton Orient visit Fratton Park in the FA Cup and run out 4-1 winners, all their goals arriving in the second-half. It was horrible, a dark day.

‘The following afternoon, we had the Mad Hatter’s Party event to raise money for children’s charities and Milan couldn’t look any of those players attending in the eye.

‘Yoshi was a good shot-stopper, though, and a decent number two. His agility was brilliant, but when put under pressure and challenged to make split-second decisions he couldn’t do it because he hadn’t played at that level.

‘I suppose his height could have been a concern. Certainly if I had been an opponent I’d be thinking “Just hang it over him” because you knew there was a chance of out-jumping or physically leaning into him.

‘He was a good lad, though, and treated being at Pompey as an honour. He always smiled, trained hard and everyone felt for him, it wasn’t his fault he was in that situation.

‘Yoshi had probably been sold this dream of coming to England and playing for a big club, but he didn’t get time to adjust.

‘Rixy was sacked in March 2002, although Scott Hiley, Shaun Derry, Nigel Quashie, Kevin Harper and Peter Crouch had met Milan to ask not to get rid of him. He was dismissed within 24 hours.’

Linvoy Primus made 219 Pompey appearances and scored six goals from July 2000 until December 2009.

Played Up Pompey Too, released in 2017, is still available from Amazon. While Played Up Pompey Three, which contains more of your favourite Blues players, is out in September.

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