Let the Games Begin
By: Andrew |
5 Comments
I can’t say the bar was set very high for Pompey as we headed into the match with Fulham. That being said, I was pretty impressed with how we looked on Saturday.
Piquionne impressed me, I’m glad we picked up the Frenchie. Hopefully he can keep playing with the same intensity throughout the entire season. I’d like to see another striker play up with Piq–though we had a nice number of shots (17) vs. Fulham, I doubt we’ll be able to penetrate the defenses of many of the teams we face down the road with only Piq up front.
Also, Kranjcar needs to get more involved. He is a skilled player, but I hardly heard his name during the match. Was Utaka even playing?? Our defense played pretty well overall. I thought Belhadj played exceptionally well, but was left stranded a couple times.
Nobody needs to hear anymore that this is going to be a tough season for the Blues. The question is, how tough will it be?
Tomorrow is a must win. Not looking forward to the following matches with Arsenal at the Emirates (those 6 goals Saturday have me shaking in my boots) and MC the following week.
I’m hopeful though. I think if the players play with the same fire they played opening day, we should be able to avoid relegation. But it almost gurantees to be a trying season, which could break some players’ spirits.
Rumors are circulating about possible late-additions to the club. I’ll do my best to keep y’all up to date as speculation becomes more concrete.
I’m predicting a 1-0 win for Pompey tomorrow. PUP!
Category: Team News
Piquionne to Pompey, Nugent on the outs, and other news
By: Andrew | 4 Comments
The club, in what I have to assume was a move timed to quell fans’ growing disaffection with management, signs another 30-year old footballer, striker Frederic Piquionne.
Reviews are mixed of the former Les Gones player. Sky Sports rates him a 5.0, which means “Below-average- some faults, out-of-touch.” David Nugent, graded by the same scale, is a 5.9.
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On a side note, do these ratings mean anything to you?
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The club sure is “playing up” the importance of Piquionne to the public. The announcement posted on the OS praises the striker as being “renowned for his pace and power” and touts his lengthy record as a player. Here is a detailed player summary from GFDb.com.
It appears his glory days were played earlier this decade in Ligue 1. In his 2004-05 season with Saint-Etienne, he landed 11 goals on 36 games. Since then, he had 11 goals on 30 games split between Saint-Etienne and AS Monaco during the 2006-07 season. From 2007-08 he scored 7 goals on 26 starts with AS Monaco, and last season he started 6 games with Lyon, scoring 3 goals (including one during Lyon’s UEFA matchup with Fiorentina).
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Peter Storrie gushed over the striker, saying in Portsmouth Today:
‘We have him on loan but you could easily pay £5-6m without hesitating.’
‘Harry (Redknapp) and I tried to get him before but couldn’t get him out at the time. He was at St Etienne at the time and I sat in their club offices all day. We had agreed a deal to buy him but they couldn’t find a replacement. They were all day on the phone on transfer deadline day and it collapsed.’
‘As a club, we’ve always tracked him and he’s the type of player our fans will like. If you look at his career, he’s always had a very good scoring record. He had some issues last season in terms of playing and got a bit frustrated being on the bench, but finished the campaign in the team. He’s played in their four pre-season games and can go straight into the team against Rangers – subject to international clearance.’
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The acquisition of Piquionne, combined with the Pompey in Portugal fracas with teammate Marc Wilson involving a “lump of wood”, could signal the end of David Nugent’s stint at Pompey.
Storrie mentioned that the club has already received an offer, but refused to comment further. Reports claim that Stoke is the most likely destination for Mr. Nugent.
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In other news…
David James has reaffirmed that he will stay at Pompey. He shares the sentiments of the fans and supporters, stating that he understands that “it is going to be a hard season and (I) just hope we don’t get rid of anyone else.”
Despite his pledge of allegiance, rumors are still circulating about the possibility he will leave after we sign Antti Niemi. I’m just not ready to jump on the Niemi bandwagon.
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The Zaki loan deal could still potentially happen. However, there is not very encouraging news stemming from a Goal.com interview with the striker as he sums up the situation saying:
I am only focusing on Zamalek. I don’t know anything about Portsmouth as this issue is between my club and agent and Portsmouth.
The days are numbered, so news is surely to break soon regarding this, and all other transfers.
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A Soccernet report affirms that looks are still being given to Mark Viduka.
It didn’t sound like we were going to sign any more players after this week’s statements and to-and-fro amongst management. It is very, very difficult to find out what exactly it is that we are up to!
Category: Team NewsWhat’s Goin’ On, What’s Goin’ On?
By: Andrew | 1 Comment
If you haven’t already read the grim posting on the official Portsmouth website, check it out in its entirety here.
The basic gist of the article is that they’re just trying to keep the boat afloat. This piece is worth reprinting:
While it is our intention to add strength to the existing squad we cannot rule out the possibility of having to sell more players should the takeover not happen.
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…… “Should the takeover not happen??” August 15 is rapidly approaching.
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The statement was posted in response to an article published today in The Sun, who we all know is undoubtedly the UK’s most reputable source for football information. But there obviously must have been some truth in the report, as it merited a prompt explanation from the club.
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Mr. Al Fahim, just hours later, released his response to the ordeal. He states that he has “duly met both deadlines” in regards to due diligence process and the “Fit and Proper Person Test.”
Al Fahim defers responsibility for this summer’s mismanagement by saying that he is “exercising every effort to complete (the transaction) as soon as possible” and commends the Pompey supporters for “showing an extraordinary level of loyalty to this great club.”
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So what do we make of this?
Nothing new. And damn surely nothing good. The club is still very much in limbo, with what’s looking to be a bleak end to the transfer period.
We could possibly be saying goodbyes to the likes of Sylvain Distin, Nadir Belhadj, John Utaka, and Sol Campbell by the season’s end.
I’m going to mail all of my bar tabs from this summer to Peter Storrie.
Category: Team NewsSunday Update
By: Andrew | Add Comments
pfcproductions has uploaded a video of “The Top 10 Portsmouth FC Goals” from the 08/09 season.
It’s a very nicely done feature, definitely worth checking out.
See it here.
Here are the 10 goals selected:
10. Defoe’s poised left-footed goal vs Blackburn
9. Hreidarsson’s fierce header vs Manchester City
8. Belhadj’s brilliantly placed lower-left corner goal vs Sunderland
7. Nugent’s thoughtful grounder vs Tottenham
6. Traore’s between the legs goal vs Sunderland
5. Johnson’s expertly placed rebound vs Manchester City
4. Kaboul’s strong far side chip vs West Brom
3. Kranjcar’s flawless free kick vs West Brom
2. Crouch’s memorable bicycle kick vs Stoke
1. Glen Johnson’s missle of a shot vs Hull
Sure will miss those guys…
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In other news, Pompey suffered a 4-0 thumping at the hands of Benefica. This following a 2-0 blanking by Vitoria a day earlier.
Coach Hart reassuringly told the press after the match that “we did well to keep it to four.” Yikes.
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He also added fuel to the speculatory flame, explaining that
It was always going to be a difficult tournament for us because we haven’t signed many players yet. But we’ve got our targets and we’re trying to close them down.
We’ve got a lot of targets and we’re looking at a lot of players. We’re trying to whittle them down and get them in.
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Category: Team NewsFinnan and Mokoena Confirmed, Kanu Close
By: Andrew | 2 Comments
33 year-old Irish international Steve Finnan has officially signed a 1-year contract with Pompey. Finnan made just 3 starts for Espanyol this past year, yet made a number of appearances for Ireland in international play.
Coach Hart said of signing Finnan:
It whetted my appetite to think that we could get a player of Steve’s calibre here. He’s really looking forward to coming here and we’re looking forward to seeing him play.
At 33, Finnan joins an already aging squad. Here are the other members of Pompey’s 30+ club…
GK David James, 39 (as of August 1 — Happy Birthday)
DF Linvoy Primus, 36 in September
DF Hermann Hreidarsson, 35
DF Steve Finnan, 33
DF Sylvain Distin, 31 (will be 32 in December)
MF Angelos Basinas, 33
MF Papa Bouba Diop, 31
MF Hayden Mullins, 30
MF Richard Hughes, 30
ST Kanu, 31
On our current roster, with the inclusion of Finnan, Mokoena, and Kanu, 10 of our 21 players are at least 30 years old!
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Aaron “the Axe” Mokoena, who has been a Blue on everything but paper since May, joins the club on a 3-year term.
Coach Hart had these comments to make about the ex-Blackburn midfielder:
Aaron’s a strong player who bites in the tackle and he’s the sort of character we’re going to need in the coming months.
I watched him play for South Africa in the Confederations Cup over the summer and he did great.
He can play in defence or in midfield but I mostly see him as a midfielder. We’ve done extremely well to get him here. I’m really pleased that he’s joined.
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Portsmouth News reports that Kanu will be back for another year. The striker made just 5 starts for Pompey last year, mostly being played as a substitute, totaling 25 appearances for the club in 08-09. He scored 2 goals last season.
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Still waiting to see if we’re going to land the Croatian Sensation…
And new speculation that 33-year old Aussie striker, Mark Viduka, is heading to Pompey.
Also, Amr Zaki, Stephen Hunt, Antti Niemi, and Frederic Piquionne are all being mentioned as possible Pompey additions.
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We take on Guimaraes tonight in Portugal. Follow the action here
Category: Team News16 Days…
By: Andrew | 1 Comment
On August 15th, we take on Fulham, beginning another season in the Premiership. Not wasting much time tackling the big clubs, as we see Arsenal on the 22nd and Manchester City on the 30th.
16 days is not a long time. We need to start making sound, legitimate moves and progress towards being able to field an actual team. At the current rate, Fulham is going to have no trouble dismantling our efforts and the season is going to be a long drubbing, ending with relegation.
Let’s take a look at what club management is doing to ease our fears…
Are we going to keep signing players? At the moment, the answer is yes. 
Pompey Coach Paul Hart was quoted Monday in a Portsmouth Today write-up saying:
In the next week or two we should see some additions to the squad. I’ve been looking at most positions because obviously we’ve got to have back-up. And there’s a type of player and a type of character that we are trying to get in as well.
Five or six players is what we are looking at and I’m hopeful.
I’m just going to save myself the sweat of sorting out the speculation regarding just who those “five or six players” will be. Coach Hart made sure to mention right-back Steve Finnan and striker Nikola Kalinic as hopeful additions to the squad. But with Peter Storrie manning the guns, you just never know.
Ok, so much for not joining in on the transfer gossip. Here’s an article that got me pretty excited about signing prospective strikers Amr Zaki, Ross McCormack, and Nikola Kalinic. Peter who??
Are we going to keep losing players? Believe it or not, yes, it’s possible the cuts will continue. There is lots of speculation on the nets, basically all stemming from this Sky Sports account, that a strong player, Nadir Belhadj, is possibly going to Hull.
I really hope that cutting Crouch was the end of all that…
Oh and check it out – new threads. Glad we have our priorities straight!
Category: Team NewsCrouch Confirmed Out, Breaking News Regarding Replacement
By: Andrew | 6 Comments
The club posted a statement on its website today, confirming that “Peter Crouch has joined Tottenham Hotspur for an undisclosed fee,” with the rationalization of his sale being part of an attempt to “repay scheduled debts.”
Crouch, perhaps the biggest name to leave the club this period, hinted at a move earlier this year with publicly made comments, saying
Category: Team NewsFriday, Friday, Friday
By: Andrew | 2 Comments
Transfer period speculation
Stephen Hunt, who you may remember from this incident, is rumored to be heading to Pompey for a £3.5million fee (source).
Hunt mostly played left midfield at Reading.
A return to red as Liverpool enters the whole Peter Crouch mix (source), alongside Blackburn, Sunderland, Aston Villa, Manchester City, and Tottenham.
Much of the same company is in the hunt for Christian Poulsen. Pompey wants to sign him “on loan for the rest of the season with a view to a £5m permanent transfer” (source).
However, his agent has publicly stated, “Christian has no intention of leaving Turin (Juventus).”
Would look nice on the books to replace Diarra (+€20m) with Poulsen (-£5m). We’ll see how it all shakes out in the coming days. Sounds like he’ll probably end up with Barca though.
Can’t wait to see what kind of talent we bring in on the closing end of the transfer period. Hopefully we can pull in some dynamic players who will force Hart to take some risks with his game strategy. All in all, I can’t help but feel optimistic about the direction we’re heading.
Jobsite is the new main sponsor of Portsmouth football club. Bet the players are excited about upgrading their home stereo systems…
Portsmouth FC’s new sponsor is Jobsite UK, the online job board, not Jobsite Systems, the sound equipment manufacturer. Thanks Cheryl for the correction, and apologies for any confusion!
Category: Team NewsRound and Round We Go
By: Andrew | 3 Comments
Apologies for not being around lately. July has been a very busy month so far.
Here is a timeline/recap of the month’s news:
July 1 — Trimming the squad
The club confirms the release of Noe Pamarot, Lauren, Glen Little, Djimi Traore, and Jerome Thomas
And, Sean Davis goes to Bolton on a free transfer.
July 3 — Linvoy Primus commits for another (his 10th) season with Portmsouth, serving in an “ambassadorial role, a pastoral role.” He stated on the club’s official website that he is “definitely going to finish (his) career here and then stay with the club when that finishes.”
Plain and simply an act of loyalty and courage. Props to Mr. Primus.
July 7 — David James reports from Malawi, where he (and his David James Foundation) spent 3 days touring the south African country with the Samaritan Trust to discuss farming techniques and agricultural education with Malawian farmers. He told Afriquejet , an African news agency, that “once his agriculture projects flourish, he will consider setting up a David James Sports Academy to nurture young talents.”
July 9 — Sunderland makes an $11 million, $12 million bid for Peter Crouch. Speculation also stemming from Fulham, Aston Villa, and Blackburn.
July 10 — Players report to training
Among the notable non-participants are Crouch, Hreidarsson, Belhadj, Utaka, and Cranie. Video from the training session, courtesy of Portsmouth FC.
July 13 — Official statement from PFC
The club declares on its website that:
The due diligence process for the takeover of the club by Sulaiman Al Fahim has now been completed.
Al Fahim Asia Associates are now conducting their final commercial assessment.
A formal application for the ‘Fit and Proper Person Test’ has been submitted to the Premier League.
Also, kit sponsor Canterbury is forced into administration. Thus, the kit contract with Portmsouth is null and void.
July 17 — Crouch in talks with Sunderland
Rumors are confirmed when Peter Crouch flies to Newcastle to meet with Sunderland’s manager, Steve Bruce, after the club approved of a $12 million transfer fee.
July 19 — A Guardian Newspaper article details charity work done by Utaka and Kanu.
July 21 — Finally, the takeover is complete. Paul Hart secures a 2-year contract. So much for Mancini or Sven…
Hart doesn’t waste much time addressing Crouch’s future, telling the press, “I think Peter will leave.”
Eugene Bopp scores 2 goals as the Blues settle for a draw with the Hawks. The first half squad featured Begovic, Wilson, Kaboul, Distin, Bhasera, Basinas, Mullins, Hughes, Kranjcar, Ritchie, Nugent. The second half: Ashdown, Ward, Audel, Primus, Hurst, Bopp, Diop, M’Bami, Cowan-Hall, Pancrate, Subotic.
The remaining preseason schedule is as follows:
July 21 v Havant & Waterlooville (a), July 25 v Basingstoke (a), July 27 v Eastleigh (a), July 31 v Guimaraes (a), Aug 1 v Benfica (a), Aug 8 v Rangers (h)
July 22 — Pictures of the new (sponsorless) home kit from MyPompey
Hart quells speculation that Distin is on the outs, dismissing a possible move to Aston Villa, saying the club wants “Sylvain to remain at this football club and will be making sure he does.”
Diego Maradona wants to come to Pompey as a “global ambassador” Huh, what?
Category: Team NewsRe-racking the Backfield
By: Andrew | 4 Comments
So, with both Glens (Johnson and Little) gone, Lauren leaving, Pamarot out, and Djimi Traore and Jerome Thomas being released — as well as rumors surrounding both the fates of Sol Campbell and Sylvain Distin, who is going to make up the Pompey backfield?
Hreirdarrson has inked his stay, and will likely secure himself a spot on the starting roster (at least for the onset of the season) at LCB. He anchored the defense at Charlton, and barring any health issues, Hreidarrson will take an increased role in the defensive game plan.
Right back should be an interesting call. In addition to Portsmouth veteran Kaboul, youngsters Cranie and Wilson will also be vying for the spot. I like the idea of rotating the two younger players in and getting more of a feel of how well they handle the job. While playing for the U-21 England team, Cranie publicly announced that he is ready “to show what (he) can do” for the squad.
Kaboul is reliable and proven, and will be an asset to the defense no matter where he’s assigned to play.
I like Belhadj at LB, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see him playing in the midfield this year. Would like to see him play winger-and hopefully finish that Maradona this year.
We’ve brought “The Axe” Mokoena in from Blackburn, who’s versatility and size should make him a solid choice for CB. 
So-
LB: Belhadj
LCB: Hreidarsson/Mokoena
RCB: Kaboul/Mokoena
RB: Cranie/Wilson
??
Category: Team News
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