Ahead of tomorrow's clash at the SoL, we spoke to Pompey fan Sam Stone to give us the lowdown on Danny Cowley's side...
Portsmouth are 9th in League One. Are you happy with things so far?
All things considered I think I must be content. We have made it to within touching distance of the playoffs after starting the season poorly with a squad littered with stagnant high earners from the Kenny Jackett era. We probably should’ve turned a couple of draws into wins and couple of losses into at least draws, but sitting in 9th place isn’t the end of the world with half the season still to play.
You've recently sold John Marquis to Lincoln, replacing him with Tyler Walker on loan from Coventry. Is this a good move in your opinion?
YES! You have asked this to someone who cannot quite fathom how John Marquis has made it as a professional footballer. Despite scoring 38 goals over three seasons at the club, he has only managed 10 in his last 55 games and displayed technical attributes that are not dissimilar to Sunday League football. He struggled to hold the ball up, his linkup play is poor, he rarely won a header, his first touch was about as bad as you can get in this league and his finishing technique was woeful. Marquis’ three years were an abject failure and it is good the club have been able to get his substantial wage off the bill. Tyler Walker has scored goals at this level before and has recent Championship pedigree. He featured against Wimbledon on Tuesday, and despite not making a huge impact, he displayed all the basic attributes that a good striker needs to succeed. Something John Marquis couldn’t. He has previously worked with Danny Cowley, and if he can find his scoring touch again, he will be an excellent addition.
After winning just once in your last four league games, what's going wrong at the moment for Pompey?
I don’t think anything has gone wrong as such, I just feel that the lack of football has seen our superb pre-Christmas form dissipate slightly due to lack of match sharpness. The away trip to Cambridge was an awful match between two extremely rusty sides. The loss to MK Dons was a fixture that could quite literally have had any outcome, with Pompey dominating for much of the match against a very impressive side. Furthermore, despite not playing particularly well on Tuesday Cowley’s men had enough chances to win the match at Wimbledon. The more football the side the play the better they will get, and with the new signings getting up to speed of things I can see Pompey regaining their good form in the coming weeks.
Which Sunderland player worries you the most?
I think I previously mentioned Ross Stewart and that would be the obvious choice considering his form at present. However, I will go for Dan Neil. I have seen a lot of speculation over his future and it seems Sunderland will do very well to keep hold of him for the foreseeable future. Considering his age and position he has had a significant impact for Sunderland and I can’t quite understand why he was a substitute in the previous encounter at Fratton Park. Neil up against Morrell and Thompson will be a good battle.
Which Pompey player could cause us problems?
We have obviously relied heavily on the influence of Marcus Harness this season but I have a suspicion that Michael Jacobs will replicate his performance at the Stadium of Light in the behind closed doors encounter in 2020. Jacobs tormented Sunderland that day before going off injured in a 3-1 victory, and his recent cameo appearances fully merit a start in this fixture. After his performance on Tuesday as a substitute I have a feeling he may get the opportunity to feature from the outset. Despite not being the quickest, his close control and dribbling ability is very good and when playing with Harness, they can both compliment each other and be a real threat, so he will be my one to watch.
Unfortunately, you put us to the sword at Fratton Park and won 4-0. What's your score prediction for the reverse fixture?
Pompey are searching for form and Sunderland are trending on one of their ‘streaks’ but potentially in the wrong direction after your excellent form around Christmas. So taking this into consideration I am going to go for a 2-1 Pompey win, with Tyler Walker and Marcus Harness scoring either side of a Ross Stewart strike.
Earlier this season, you predicted Sunderland to finish in the automatic promotion places and Portsmouth just outside the playoffs. Do you want to change that prediction?
I think that prediction looks pretty good! I feel it is probably 2/3 out of Sunderland, Rotherham or Wigan and I cannot predict that. Rotherham are having a dip, Wigan have hardly played any games and Sunderland go hot and cold. Rotherham and Sunderland would be my hunch but it could go either way. I actually would change my prediction on Pompey considering our January business so far and think we could sneak into the playoffs if our signings hit the ground running.
