And so to historic Fratton Park with its mock Tudor half-timbered entrance for the 3rd Round of the FA Cup. Portsmouth v Arsenal has the ring of titanic clashes of long ago, when shorts were baggy, wingers bow-legged and football still in black and white.
Yet we were last at Fratton Park as recently as 2020 for a 5th Round FA Cup tie. We won 2-0 with goals from Sokratis Papastathopoulos and Eddie Nketiah, en route to winning the Cup behind closed doors due to Covid. Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli are the only two who played against Portsmouth still in our first-team squad.
For the most recent league game, you have to go back to December 2009, and the death throes of Portsmouth’s turbulent debut in the Premier League. That started in the 2003-04 season after ‘Arry Rednapp and Jim Smith had taken the club back to the top flight after 15 seasons away. Eighteen months later, Redknapp walked out after a row with his chairman, and to rub it in, went to arch-rivals Southampton.
To the surprise of all, he returned mid-way through the following season. With the owners flashing the cash, he secured two top-half finishes in the league and won the FA Cup with a team that included David James, Sol Campbell, Lassana Diarra, Niko Kranjčar and Kanu.
Yet only a few months after winning the FA cup, Redknapp left again, leaving his assistant, Tony Adams, as manager. Our former captain lasted barely three months. Subsequently, serious financial problems came to light. At the end of 2009, the taxman filed a winding-up petition against the club.
Things then got bad. Portsmouth went into administration twice and were relegated three times in four seasons. In 2013, the Pompey Supporters Trust, a fan group, took over. The trust got the club out of administration, cleared its debt and won promotion from the fourth tier of English football to the third, making Portsmouth one of only five English football clubs to have been champions of all four tiers of English professional football.
At that point, the trust sold the club to its current owner, the US investment company of former Disney chairman Michael Eisner.
John Mousinho
John Mousinho will take charge of Portsmouth for the 150th time on Sunday. The club is the 39-year-old’s first managerial job, which he took on in 2023 after retiring from what can only be described as a journeyman’s playing career. His clubs were Oxford United, Burton Albion, Preston North End, Stevenage, Gillingham, Wycombe Wanderers, Brentford, Yeading (yes, non-league Yeading; it is not a typo for Reading), Slough, Woking and Chesham. He also played for the University of Notre Dame in the United States. The record shows that every move he made between clubs was either a loan or a free transfer.
In his first season in charge, Portsmouth were League One champions. Last season, they finished 16th in the Championship. However, this season, they are sitting 21st, a point above the relegation zone, having won six of their 24 league games. Last time out, they got a 5-0 pasting at Bristol City on New Year’s Day. Mousinho departed from his customary 4-2-3-1 to play with a back three for that game. I doubt he will do that against us.
The opposition
Few names in the Portsmouth squad are likely to be familiar to many ‘holics.
Nico Schmid, a 28-year-old Austrian who has been called up but not capped by his country, is the first-choice keeper.
Mousinho will have Regan Poole, a throw-your-body-at-the-ball defender with one Wales cap, at centre back, but limited fit options for a partner.
Irishman Conor Shaughnessy, 29, who was first choice before getting injured in September and has Scottish Premiership experience with Hearts, might start, but has only had two games since returning to the team and has not managed 90 mins in either. Mousinho, for whom league survival will be a higher priority than the FA Cup, may prefer to save him for next Wednesday’s six-pointer against Sheffield Wednesday.
Yet 21-year-old Hayden Matthews, who has one cap for Australia and has recently been partnering Poole, turned his ankle against Bristol City and will be out for two months. Mousinho is already missing Josh Knight, one of his summer arrivals, from Hannover 96, who has a back stress fracture. Ibane Bowat, a London-born former Scotland U-21 international, who had a poor game against Bristol City as the third centre back, may retain a place by default.
Another youngster, 22-year-old Terry Devlin, has been playing right back. He is a seasoned international in comparison with four Northern Ireland caps. He is also Portsmouth’s joint leading goal scorer this season, with three. They are the second-lowest goal scorers in the Championship.
At left back, we should see Zak Swanson, formerly of this parish. We sold him to Pompey in 2022, after he had had 15 PL games on the bench for us, without getting a minute on the pitch. Now 25, he will be keen to show what we might have missed.
Veteran club captain Marlon Pack, who began his career in Portsmouth’s youth system when the club was still in the Premier League before moving to Cheltenham, Bristol City, and Cardiff, will anchor the midfield alongside the ever-present 26-year-old Andre Dozzell, who was in England’s age group sides in his youth while at Ipswich.
Portsmouth’s big-money summer signing, at £1.2 million, Hungarian U-21 international central midfielder Márk Kosznovszky, has just torn his ACL and is done for the season, or more. That leaves Mousinho’s choice for playmaker between Conor Chaplin, who is on loan from Ipswich but, like his captain, started in Portsmouth’s youth teams, and experienced local lad John Swift, a summer arrival from West Brom, who played in the same England U-21 team as Rob Holding and Calum Chambers (Google them, younger ‘holics).
With Josh Murphy and Callum Lang’s hamstrings requiring another month of recovery, Frenchman Florian Bianchini gone in the fetlock and the neighbours having just recalled loanee South Korean starlet Min-hyeok Yang, Mousinho is short of wingers, who are crucial to his long-ball counterattacking.
Adrian Segecic, who, like compatriot and similarly aged Matthews, was signed from Sydney FC, will likely start on the right flank. He doesn’t yet have an international cap, although he has been called up to the national squad. Harvey Blair, bought from Liverpool’s U-21s in the summer, will likely start on the other side.
Irishman Franco Umeh-Chibueze, who has 1 minute of senior football under his belt, is the only other fit winger available.
Up front, 30-goal-a-season Brazilian international Colby… just joking, BtM… ex-Accrington striker Colby Bishop, who has scored once this season, had led the line until he rolled his ankle in December. He might only be able to play with a pain-killing injection, and Mousinho may prefer to be sure of having him for the Owls game. Makenzie Kirk, an Edinburgh-born Northern Ireland U-21 international, who has scored as many goals as Bishop despite playing only a quarter as many minutes, would deputise.
The Arsenal
No Riccardo Calafiori, Cristhian Mosquera or Max Dowman, and probably no Piero Hincapié. I expect the light cavalry to start with the heavy artillery on the bench. That might include Kai Havertz. Jesus or Gyökeres as the nine will be the big call. Thus:
Arrizabalaga
White, Salmon, Gabriel, MLS
Merino, Norgaard, Eze
Madeuke, Gyökeres, Martinelli
Yet, if Nwaneri doesn’t start this game, then when?
This is an FA Cup tie. The form book goes out the window. Just ask Crystal Palace. Pompey’s fans and players will be up for it in compact and noisy Fratton Park. Yet even with our irregulars, we should have enough quality to beat a Championship side decimated by injury, choc full of inexperience and struggling to avoid relegation on a ground where we have not lost since 1958 (a 5-4 defeat in a game where we were 4-0 down before fighting back to 4-4).
I hazard that we will be the first team to put more than two goals past Pompey at home this season and that a 3-0 win will see us through to the 4th round for the first time in three seasons.
Enjoy the game, ‘holics, near and far.
Thanks for a very informative preview Ned . About thirty years ago our biggest client organised a special pre – match tour of Fratton Park for us. The dressing rooms were dark, tiny and uninviting . I don’t think it has changed much .
I think to accommodate Nwaneri we may put Norgaard into the back four with Marli Salmon and White swapping positions . We should win and it might be nice for Gyokeres to get some confidence by playing in this one . I think a 3-0 win is on the cards for us
That laptop must be smoking, Ned – another great contribution so soon after the last one.
Hopefully we will rest as many as you predict. Can’t believe Hinkapie is now out with a hamstring. We have a very unfortunate knack of picking up clusters of injuries in the same positions. I read somewhere that Hinkapie had missed 10 games out of 220 odd before coming to Arsenal. A bit like the indestructible Thomas Partey among others., what do we do to them ?
I hope whoever plays tomorrow can abandon the handbrake and we can at least rack up a cricket score. Just not an England cricket score !
Thanks Ned for producing a superb, characteristically highly informative preview at extremely short notice. The monks deserve an extra thimbleful of mead and half a ginger nut for that feat.
I like your team but suspect that, if Salmon plays he will be at right back with Ben White taking his original centre back position. I do think Nwaneri will play – if he doesn’t I think his future with us is at risk. I would accommodate him by asking Eze to start wide left with freedom to roam centrally and play Nwaneri in Ødegaard’s inside right role (does anyone recognise the terminology?). I prefer the thought of Nørgaard reprising the Zubimendi role to trying to replace Gabriel. 3-0 would do very nicely.
I hope Pompey aren’t too agricultural in the challenge. We could do without further injuries.
Thanks Ned, great stuff at short notice.
The team looks about right but Nwaneri to start I hope.
I wonder if this is the comeback game for Kai.
I remember us winning 6-0 at Portsmouth during
Thé Wenger Years, one of our best team performances of
that whole era I thought. But any win will do today.
Seriously great preview. Well researched, well written. A+
Will Gyokores do anything to convince us there is hope for the lad? Will we catch a glimpse of the lesser-spotted Kai? Will Eze shine again? Could be an interesting day for the aforementioned.
Thanks for such a well-researched preview Ned. It’s a bit of a variation from you, eschewing the inputs of the historically minded monks in favor of the younger novices looking deeply into the diversely assembled, though unfortunately for them mostly injured, squad.
Who are the fourth team to have won all the four tiers? I inaccurately thought its only three: Burnley, Wolves and Portsmouth.
I like your team. Though I see the logic of playing Nørgaard in defense allowing Nwaneri the right sided 8 with Merino dropping to the 6 role. Alternatively, we can re-try Eze as the left winger, Merino left-sided 8, and Nørgaard in his natural position.
Kepa
White-Salmon-Gabriel-MLS
Nwaneri-Nørgaard-Merino
Madueke-Jesus-Eze
I think even though we should win this one, and handsomely enough, given the somewhat makeshift backline we will concede. An entertaining 4-1 away victory to kickstart our FA cup run would be perfect.
Come on Arsenal!
Could I ask for a brief period of sympathy and respect for the Spuds who are having an awful time ?
No didn’t think I could. Funny isn’t it ! 😀
Cheers, Ned. Impressive groundwork from the monks.
Let’s hope we shine and one of our players get an ovation like TH14 once did.
The spuds are making me laugh on an almost weekly basis now, Brentford up to 5th
without Frank.
Once again, Ned positions GHF at the information and interest pinnacle with his preview piece. For me, however, it’s a Ned inversion which hasn’t left me cowering in fear of unmanageable opposition potency but rather, completely sympathetic to John Mousinho’s selection woes to the extent that Mikel should consider a very short term loan of a few players to him to make a game of this fixture.
Having suffered in the North Bank a Jesus ACL and Odegaard penalty miss at this stage last year, a high scoring 5-0 away win would do me nicely today to banish those unpleasant memories.
Let’s see a glimmer of Kai Havertz at least please, Arsenal. And it would be great to see both Gnarly Marly (leaping like a young) Salmon and Nwaneri get some game time.
Meanwhile, a cursory review of the Predictathon table reveals that only one of the League’s managers has achieved the positioning potential that I set out for them in the giddy weeks of anticipation before season kick-off.
Not good enough, fellas. Time for all of you to raise your game, you’re not making me look good!
I’ve started my usual long slide down the table, BtM, so you might end up above me at some point.
I thought, just for fun, I’d have a guess at the line-up. Turns out it’s very similar to Ned’s –
Kepa; White, Salmon, Gabriel, Lewis-Skelly; Nwaneri, Norgaard, Merino; Madueke, Gyokeres, Eze;
Subs: Raya, Timber, Saliba, Odegaard, Zubimendi, Rice, Jesus
Mikel seems to want Nwaneri to play more centrally – so this gets him one step closer ?
Good looking side you’ve got there, Trev. Well done1
But where, oh where, is the lesser spotted Kai?
Thanks Ned and the monks for providing more information about Pompey than they probable know themselves. Their manager is very close to being the reviled Jose Mourinho – I don’t believe he will have the same hex on us as the aforementioned.
Ned’s & Trev’s teams look very close – the best opportunity for a while for the underplayed to get some much needed match practice. A good scoring win should be in the cards.
COYRRR
I can’t see Mikel starting any kids nor starting Havertz. Both may appear for the final 20 minutes depending on the game state.
Heh, TTG @7 nice one, sir.
Matt @4 and Ollie @8, thank you for rekindling a very pleasant memory.
I wonder if the extrovert Pompey fan with the top hat and tatts is still on the go?
Arrizabalaga
White, Norgaard, Gabriel, Lewis-Skelly
Merino, Nwaneri, Eze
Madueke, Martinelli, Jesus.
Bench: Raya, Timber, Salmon, Zubimendi, Rice, Odegaard, Saka, Havertz, Gyokeres.
Thanks for the preview and starting team Ned. A comfortable win would be most comforting but a hard fought win is about what I expect and think we should hope for. COYG
No more injuries please but constructive minutes for those unaccustomed starters like Eze, MLS, White, Norgaard, Jesus and Nwaneri. Martinelli too.
As I’m mentioning the M boys, come on Madueke and Merino. We need these players to shine including Kepa too.
Thanks for the kind words above, all.
Nwaneri and Jesus get their starts, and Havertz makes the bench. Norgaard plays centre back.
Portsmouth have dropped their keeper Schmid, who had a nightmare against Bristol City, and will play Josef Bursik, a 25-year-old Londoner. Bursik started nine games earlier in the season after arriving from Club Brugges, then lost his place to Schmid. Pack is only fit enough for the bench, so Luke Le Roux, a South Africa international (nine caps), comes in. Nothing in either of those changes to send BtM back behind the couch.
Dr F@6: Sheffield United is the one you need to complete the set. Time constraints precluded a deeper delve into the archives this time.
Just checked, that Dozzell lad is, indeed, the son of the ex-Spu*s player.
Well , hopefully Martinelli has just put it to bed
And again! I must admit I was a bit surprised at the header 😂
Great singing from the away fans.
Job done. A three-goal margin against a team that was up for it, backed by fans giving their all, was a fair reflection of the gap between the two sides. Good to see Kai back.
Not an easy test, particularly in those wintry conditions. A job very well done by the shadow version of the team. A delight to see Havertz return, Nwaneri shine off the naughty step and Salmon not put a foot wrong on his FA Cup debut.
Onward!
Well summed up.
Well done Arsenal. Goals come in quite handy especially four of them in one game. From the angle I watched it, Norgaard should have gotten credit rather than OG but it’s good to see Martinelli getting credit for three of them. 👍🏼
I’ve heard from the GHF lads who went down to Fratton Park and they really enjoyed the day. Nice that C100 who has been suffering could return to action .
I thought we were very vulnerable early on but enjoyed our recovery, Gabby’s hat-trick ( have we scored from corners before?) and a very positive performance from Nwaneri who was excellent. MLS is struggling sadly
Really nice old ground, and great fans. Had a good pre match chat with a couple of Portsmouth fans. Nice guys, knowledgeable and proper fans. They both said that Pompey couldn’t defend set pieces. And lo, it came to pass.
Turns out C100 was only a row or 2 in front of me!
Pompey fans on the side got very cold and very wet, as the rain came jn h horizontally, poor buggers.
Tee. And, indeed, hee.
>>>>>>>