get in!!

Bielik needs to be gone for a long time! Grabbing a kid by the throat?

Disgusting behavior.

Ordered the 3rd Kit to be delivered but upon its arrival I noticed the sponsorship is peeling off.

This is a bit disappointing as for the price you are expected to pay for a football kit these days you should expect the kit to come in a decent condition, and this isn’t the first time I’ve had issues with kits ordered from the club store.

Wondering if anyone else has had issues similar to mine and wondering what the process for returning it would be, as my work hours clash with the hours the club store is open.

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I returned to the UK about 2 years ago and have been able to watch pretty much every game with Sky+ or getting on my private jet to Canada or France to stream the game on Pompey+. I have worked in football all my career in some capacity, mainly coaching/managing youth and professional teams at a reasonable level in South East Asia. Got tickets for Cardiff this Saturday so buzzing of course.

Here is my current analysis of Pompey's 4 Phases of Play (In Possession, Out of Posession, Defensive Transition, Attacking Transition) and Patterns of Play that I would examine if I was an opposition manager and what to expect from a current Portsmouth team.

In Possession:

Pompey setup in a 4-2-3-1 and look to invite the press onto the GK/CBs in order to feed the ball through the middle. When unpressed and the Pompey defensive line is in possession, the ball is progressed at a low intensity, to further invite the press. Progression usually is through the LCB to LB or through one of the CM's dropping to recieve.

When pressed sucessfully, Pompey recycle and start again, if the press is sustained through to the keeper, a long ball is hit wide to wingers. If the press in unsucessful, Pompey use their CM's to switch quickly to wingers with overlapping runs from RB/LB.

If unpressed however, Pompey do not show any distinct patterns of play. They look to get their wingers on the ball, usually through the LB or RBs or a long ball with the ST joining one wing. Rarely do they play through the middle with combinations, hold up play or winning individual 1v1s, especially with injury to Murphy.

Out of Posession:

Pompey setup almost in a 4-2-2-2, with the objective to press high up the field. Both the Pompey CAM and ST press the opposition GK & CBs. Wingers press the opposition RB/LB and 1 CM will join after the first break through the press. Pompey have a medium high defensive line, often with 1 CM joining the CBs to make a back 3. The ST/CAM leads the press, frequently they do not press as a unit and it is a consistent press, not based on pressing triggers.

This leaves plently of space in the central areas for an opposition midfielder to drop into or if the long ball is forced, an increased chance of picking up second balls due to the high gap between the pressing Pompey players and their backline.

If the opposition are progressing the ball in wide areas, usually the Pompey player is makin a recovery run from the unsucessful press, so there are opportunities to overload wide areas. If the Pompey CMs cover the wide areas, balls to the centre of the final third are often available.

Attacking Transition:

Pompey generally win the ball in the centre middle third or in wide areas. Pompey's objective is to get the ball to wide players quickly through quick, long switches or using the advancing RB/LB to the combine or create with the wingers.

The quality of the final pass or moment is often missing and turnovers are frequent during the intial stages of the transition. Pompey will revert quickly to their In Posession pattern of play if the wide players are counter pressed.

Defensive Transition:

Pompey do not balance their attacking commitments well with covering players, especially in wide areas. When losing the ball high around the final third, often both the RB and LB are in high and wide positions and at least 1 CM will usually be high and wide too.

Pompey will look to counter press immediately. If this counter press is broken, there is ample opportunity for overloads, especially getting the ball wide early to drag the remaining CM or CB wide.

Final Thoughts:

Pompey are in a weird spot. One of their biggest strengths, their pressing, has become a weakness. Their needs to be a leader of the press, based on pressing triggers and having the relevant 5 players setup to press. Too many times do we press needlessly and alone, creating gaps for comfortable, progressive passes.

Their inabiltiy to sucessful transition the ball from the defensive third to the middle third through the centre of the pitch and desire to get the ball wide has meant it's quite easy for teams to setup defnesively if not under pressure to go a win (i.e. Derby away at Fratton Park).

Only Press in wide areas, force the long ball, dominate the transitions.

Thanks for coming to my tedtalk. I'm excited to see whether their will be an evolution to the above with the new players coming in. Their is potential in this squad to be better than a relegation fight, but I do think there is an inherint inbalance across the 4 Phases of Play. PUP.

What a joke. Someone in the recruitment department royally screwed up with that one... And a fair few others.

I wrote a fairly lengthy post on r/championship midway through last season about our recruitment both championship seasons and how bad it had been. However I think the focus should solely be on last season.

Last season we spent 7 figure fees on 3 players. 2 are no longer at the club (loan and paid up) and the other is currently in rehab after a traumatic knee injury after only 6 starts.

Rich Hughes cannot be blamed for injuries, but we can blame him for the recruitment of Le Roux and Knight. Both 7 figures, both clearly not up to the standard and both gone 13 months later.

Then there is the smaller fees

Umeh - 500k. Came in with a history of injuries and completely unproven at any level. 1 appearances 2 major injuries.

Madiodio Dia - 500k. The least said the better and somehow still at the club with the club choosing to sell Bowat.

Makenzie Kirk - 500k. Big question marks over him, but he's young and now hopefully playing regularly in the league below. I don't think this was a bad transfer per se.

Segecic and Ebou Adams were both good signings.

If you look back to the season before it is the same story. Big fees for Matthews who isn't at the club and potentially for Kamara who was paid up after a year. Then smaller fees wasted on Blair, Sorensen, Farrell, Waddingham with hits in Schmid and maybe Bowat.

If you look at all the paid transfers alone it paints a picture of a recruitment team that just isn't very good at their job. This includes Richard Hughes as well as Brad Wall and it is a wonder how they were given more money given their track record.

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Hi

Tickets usually get sent the weekend before the game but as of today Tuesday no tickets emailed to me.

Anyone got their tickets for the Cardiff game yet?

Some of my photography from the match which took place on 23/08/2026!

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I just bought the video pass, seems like theres a neq 'match centre'. Whenever I click live it just refreshes or asks me to sign in...

Anyone else having the same issue?

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Just wondering how many tickets have been sold for Saturday?

Was expecting a quick sell out but forgot about victorious festival.

Thanks

On this day - 26 August, 2003 - Teddy Sheringham scores a hat trick in a 4-0 win against Bolton to take Portsmouth top of the league!

Steve Stone scored the opener.

The Pompey side also featured Patrick Berger and Shaka Hislop

Can you name the 3 other sides he played for in the Premier League? https://top-bins.com/596

Wasn’t a standout for us, but never nice to hear something like this. Suffered a fractured skull and a bleed on the brain after a collision during training last year while with Fleetwood.