CanadaSaint

Thank God the manager and players have more spine than some of the fans. Imagine sitting in the dressing room and looking across at some of this lot.

The starting line-up and bench selections don't look like a team set up to a) avoid a heavy defeat, or b) score early and hang on. It looks like a team set up to play with some style and see where the chips fall. Fair enough in my book.

I don't get it. Everyone says we're short of pace all over the park (except RB) and yet some are talking about players like Dunne and Barry. Don't see them helping at all, I'm afraid.

It isn't "ridiculous." Yes, they were cracking shots but - as I said above - he went for them with his low hand, possibly because he didn't read the flight early enough. Had he gone for them with his high hand, he had a much better chance. I'm not as critical of Davis as some but this won't pass unnoticed in a league that does a lot of scouting. And it might be one (but certainly not the only) reason why we concede a fair few from longer range.

Well, the clip of the goals was quite revealing. All four originated down our right, where we seemed to struggle with the defensive midfield role. Two areas in which we could learn a lesson are these. Udinese are very quick to move the ball forward and then switch it inside - no hoofs but great runs and early delivery; not many square passes in the build-ups we saw. Udinese, unlike us, are very quick to shoot. Yes, the first two goals were crackers, but if Davis persists in trying to save high shots with his low hand he's going to let a lot more in like that at PL level.

So, again it looks like there were two games at SMS tonight.

Or the player's agent, even if it's at the instigation of the agent.

Fair enough, but from what I've see one of the issues around our box is not just failing to close people down quickly enough, but its root cause - failing to anticipate the need to close players down. We can do a lot of ball watching around there - and it gets more expensive the higher we go.

Nigel confirmed that there has been club to club contact, so it's not like this was a behind the scenes tap-up. Holloway was also very critical of Phillips' agent, so perhaps the agent jumped the gun rather than us. Still, we probably shouldn't have talked to him.

So were we slow to close down the shooter then?

No, but I think it was indicative of a plus/minus weakness we have, and one that we certainly need to address. It was pretty much replicated against Reading. We conceded several key goals from the "D" on the edge of our box because we didn't defend that vital area well, but I don't recall us scoring too many from there - largely because of a reluctance to shoot. Unless we do something about it, that weakness will be more costly this year, at both ends of the pitch.

He has one big thing going for him - a measure of versatility. That doesn't make him a starter but it makes him a good guy to have on the bench. He considers himself a Premier League player and I think he's going to get the chance to prove it.

I agree with that. We need players who have proven themselves capable of competing in the PL or a system capable of being competitive there. We don't necessarily need both, as last year's new arrivals in the PL demonstrated. The teams on buying sprees face the danger of being caught between a working system and trying to bed new players into it. That can take quite a time to sort out. I liked a lot of the things we saw against Ajax, and in some ways it might be a predictor of what we'll face from August 19 on. We started poorly, we figured things out fairly quickly in terms of what they were doing to us and what we need to do to them, we adjusted, and we looked much better. Yes, I'm concerned about the middle of the back row but I'm far from convinced that Fonte is the lost cause that some on here see him as. He was a very good player in his early days here, but he seemed to rather lose his way. I'm struggling to remember clearly but I think his decline started at around the time that Jos arrived. It's as though two good players just might not suit eachother, in which case the arrival of one solid CD would create the potential for three different partnerships. Yes, a fast, skillful wide man on the right would be great but - after the arrival of Clyne - we did some good things down that flank against Ajax. Anyway, after watching the Ajax game I think we have the system and most of the players that we need to do quite well, and we have a management team that knows how to adjust. I certainly don't feel comfortable but I'm nowhere near as concerned as some.

It would be an excellent year if all five of these things happened.

Of course we don't know what's going on behind the scenes. I said that those mentioned so far have been somewhat underwhelming, and that any suggestion that we have this kind of money to spend won't help us get someone worth having. I also think the rumour is bullsh*t and I only used the word "apparently" because MLG said that the journalist in question has solid credentials and good links with Arsenal, and because some folks on here seem to think it might be a goer. IMO the sooner we deny it, whether its true or not, the better. And there's enough reasons to avoid Fratton Park without you adding to the list.

There are several options I think. It's tough to remember but I think Fonte hasn't really been the same player since Jos arrived, and that may or may not be a coincidence. I actually thought that Fonte played quite well yesterday, apart from his horrible error, so I'm not sure that Adkins has as negative a view of him as some on here. But NA needs to get this sorted soon or else he might nor get it sorted at all before the window closes. The two CDs were the only players not changed yesterday.

I'm not suggesting it's an either/or situation, but that it's not the main priority for us. Especially if we announce to the world that we might have fifteen million up our sleeves as well as a willingness to pay big, big wages. The sooner the club stops talking about bringing in a quality central defender or two and actually does it, I'll feel a lot happier. The ones mentioned so far have been somewhat underwhelming, which is why the (apparent) willingness to go for the extremely expensive Theo is all the more surprising.

It's just not logical to me that we'd be willing to throw this kind of money around for another forward when we've been scratching to find much-needed quality at the centre of our defence. Yes, Theo's a damn good player but would he improve our chances of success more than a quality central defender?

He was a hell of a lot more than "tidy" IMO. He showed up very well in a midfield packed with skill on both sides of the ball, and played with a composure beyond his years. There's a sophistication to his game that I don't think Cork will ever approach, but they're different kinds of player. I suspect he'll play a more prominent role than you're suggesting but they can't over-expose him either.

I think CWD was talking about James's dad - John, who's a lawyer (so not your everyday Pompey fan.) In fact, with smarts like that it's surprising he's a Pompey fan at all.

I really liked so much about Clyne's performance that I feel badly to introduce a negative. Funnily enough, the weakness that Adkins spotted when he was at Palace was quite visible on a couple of occasions today - he's lost on the high ball slung to the far post, and we need to make sure he's not overmatched there with a tall guy.

Well, although most of them didn't want him in the first place, and then didn't want AOC, they'll probably go completely nuts at the thought of him going anywhere. If it's Spurs there will be contracts out on Wenger.

Now I know you're not serious ...

Not if you were around when Keegan signed. Not even close.

Sorry, Griffo, but in the absence of a winky-person I think you're taking this anti-Pompey thing too far. The kid is seventeen and looks like being a hell of a talent. If you want to take the edge off your enjoyment of watching him develop with and play for us, just because you think he might be a Pompey fan, you're going to miss out on a lot of satisfaction.