Livingston striker Tete Yengi has joined Japanese J1 League side FC Machida Zelvia on loan until the end of June this year after two years with the club.
The 25-year-old joins a side on the verge of qualifying for the knockout round of the AFC Champions League, and they are heading into the compressed 2026 league campaign having finished sixth last time out, and winning the Emperor’s Cup.
The 6ft 4in forward arrived from Ipswich Town in January 2024, and the Australian-born player netted six times in an ultimately disappointing campaign for the Lions, including the extra-time winner in the Scottish Cup against Partick Thistle at Firhill.
In last season’s promotion campaign from the Championship, Yengi (pictured at The Home of the Set Area Arena by Nigel Duncan) scored ten goals in all competitions and proved to be a man for the big occasion.
An outrageous long-range effort against Falkirk in November 2025 kept us in touching distance at the league summit, before netting the third in our SPFL Trust Trophy final triumph against Queen’s Park in April.
Of course, his best moment in amber and black came at Dingwall in last May’s SPFL Premiership play-off final, second-leg, when he secured Livi’s return to the top-flight.
David Martindale. Liivngston’s manager, said: “This move is fantastic value for the club and a great move for Tete as an individual.
“FC Machida Zelvia have a paid a six-figure loan fee and have a further six-figure transfer fee option which they can exercise in the summer if they wish to make the move permanent.”
Martindale will be excited to watch Yengi’s growth in another league and he said: “The player that walked in our building two years ago has now become a much better footballer and an even better person and we have been a great fit for one another.
“He leaves the club on a temporary loan with all of our best wishes.”
Martindale believes the move is a fantastic piece of business for the club as they try to balance the books as best they can.
The manager added: “As a club, we need to progressing towards sustainability which has proved very hard the last few years, but player trading will become a huge part of our business model moving forward.”
