Pompey welcome Accrington Stanley to Fratton Park on Saturday amidst the backdrop of the coronavirus uncertainty and how it may affect football fixtures over the coming weeks.
Pompey maintained their unbeaten record at home with a 2-2 draw against in-form Fleetwood on Tuesday, yet another opportunity missed to mount some significant pressure on the top two.
Neither side deserved anything from the game and the contest highlighted the sub-par standard of League One this season.
Amazingly, having lost to Peterborough, Coventry and dropping points against Fleetwood home and away, Pompey somehow find themselves in fourth and only two points behind stuttering Rotherham.
Jackett’s men have two winnable home games coming up before a season defining run of away games. Performances of late have not been of the level expected and are reminiscent of the languid displays that stunted Pompey at the start of the season.
A lack of movement and creativity going forward along with an inkling of defensive frailty have slowed down the promotion charge, that was gathering momentum at the start of the year.
Pompey’s freakish home form is the only reason they are remotely near the top two and it will have to continue for any hopes of automatic promotion to become reality.
There has been a growing frustration amongst fans in recent weeks around the tactics employed and the style of football.
There have always been questions over Pompey’s methods’, but they are often brushed to one side if we are winning, which is often the case.
However, the completely uninspiring and defensive display against Peterborough, which lacked any ambition is a prime example of the issues Pompey fans have with Jackett.
He will always be content with absorbing pressure and offer nothing going forward if it means we gain a point. I could deal with this if we were playing in the Championship, but considering the quality of League One this season, it is becoming tough for Pompey fans to stomach.
Pompey should find a way to win this weekend, although I am sure it will not be pretty. Accrington turned us over earlier on in the season, so it’s a good opportunity to right some wrongs and maintain pressure on the Millers.
Christian Burgess is set to return after a suspension, which is a massive boost. Ben Close missed the Fleetwood game and could still be missing for Saturday’s fixture.
I like the way Accrington go about their business and they play football the ‘right’ way. With this in mind, I feel it will be an open game that Pompey can exploit if they perform.
3-1 POMPEY.
Photo: Losing My Sight UK
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