The surprise footballing wilderness former £1.5m Portsmouth target and Peterborough & Bristol City striker now calls home

He was also a striker who subsequently tortured Blues defences as he racked up four goals in seven appearances against the Fratton Park outfit.

Now, six years on after a proposed big-money move to PO4 which many at the time believed would have catapulted Pompey to automatic promotion to the Championship after just two seasons in League One, Mo Eisa is on the move again.

And it’s far, far removed from the Football League surroundings he became accustomed to after stepping up from the non-league scene to join Cheltenham in 2017. That’s because the now 30-year-old has moved abroad to continue his career with, erm, Iran top-flight side Nassaji Mazandaran.

The former Bristol City, Peterborough and MK Dons striker has made the switch to the footballing outback on a free transfer, following his release by Exeter at the end of last season. His debut could come as early as today as Nassaji, who are based north east of capital Tehran, play Esteghlal FC in the Persian Gulf Pro League.

The Sudan-born frontman said goodbye to English football after 239 senior appearances and 80 goals. Twenty-five of those efforts came for Cheltenham in his first season at Whaddon Road - a goal-busting maiden campaign that prompted Pompey to seek out a move for the burgeoning talent in the summer of 2018.

The Blues already had a prolific front man on their books in the shape of Brett Pitman, who himself netted 25 goals during his first season at Fratton Park.

They had also already recruited Ronan Curtis, Louis Dennis, Craig MacGillivray, Tom Naylor, Lee Brown and Anton Walkes as they looked to better the eighth-placed finished recorded on their first season back in League One.

Eisa’s presence was required to help take them to the next level - the only problem was Cheltenham boss Gary Johnson sanctioned Eisa’s sale to Championship Bristol City, who were managed by his son, Lee, at the time.

As a consequence, a disappointed Jackett elected not to spend the £1.5m earmarked for Eisa’s capture, deciding instead to go with Pitman and Oli Hawkins as his central striker options during the first half of the 2018-19 season.

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That selection initially served him well, too, as the Blues led League One for three-and-a-half months before finishing fourth and losing to Sunderland in the play-offs.

It also accelerated big-money moves for Ellis Harrison and John Marquis in the summer of 2019 - signings that didn’t necessarily improve Pompey’s chances of bagging a Championship return.

As it is, it will always remain a case of ‘what if’ as far as Eisa and the Blues are concerned - especially after the striker’s time at Ashton Gate proved anything but a success.

Indeed, after just six appearances for Bristol City, with no Championship starts, he was sold to Peterborough for a club-record fee just 12 months later.

At London Road, the forward scored 21 goals over the next two seasons, before completing moves to MK Dons and Exeter respectively.

Now he’ll be causing problems for defenders in Iran’s top flight - which will be welcome news for not only Pompey, but other clubs Eisa tormented in the Football League over recent seasons.

Eisa has signed a one-year deal with Nassaji.