Michael Pantling ser nærmere på vinterens overgangsvindu.
MENINGER: Vår medlem nummer 42, Michael Pantling, er bosatt i Danmark, men pleier å reise over til England for å se Pompey flere ganger i sesongen enn noen andre av våre medlemmer.
Han deler jevnlig sine tanker og meninger om Pompey med oss. Denne gangen skriver Michael om spillerne som har forlatt oss og spillerne som er hentet inn i januar.
Michael Pantling til høyre.
SE OGSÅ: Pompey fortsetter å skuffe
It is rare that the winter transfer window brings in players that will benefit a club in the longer term but this one might be an exception.
Denver Hume was very well though of by Sunderland fans and he was perhaps unluck with injury and contract negotiations but Pompey have taken a chance and he could develop into a very fine player.
His arrival meant there was no longer a place for Lee Brown who was popular with our fans, playing a robust game but, in my opinion, getting too many unnecessary yellow cards and not showing the necessary leadership to fulfil the role of team captain. He has recently been critical of Pompey’s tactics and blaming them on Ronan Curtis’ decline. He always gave whole hearted performances and will be missed but it was becoming increasingly clear that his contract would not be renewed when it expired at the end of the season. On balance I think that the change from Brown to Hume should improve the team.
Marquis leverte ikke
I have admired the skill of John Marquis ever since we had him on loan from Millwall, but unfortunately he didn’t deliver for Pompey this time around and was being used less and less frequently. Something clearly wasn’t working and despite being one of our more expensive buys in recent years he wasn’t going to get a new contract. Hopefully we will have got something out of it other than a reduction in the wage bill. Having already scored twice for Lincoln he has demonstrated that he is still a good player, good luck to him.
It remains to be seen whether Aiden O’Brien will be the man to replace Marquis and get us some much needed goals. He has the experience and should fit in will a number of former colleagues from his time at Millwall.
One never knows, he could become our main goal scorer and become the new “Brett Pittman” over the rest of the season – if he can find the net fairly often the result will be an improvement on a non-functioning Marquis but let’s see him in action.
Downing-signeringen var en feil
Ellis Harrison was unlucky with injury last season and has been marginalised this season. Unable to produce his best with any consistency he is another who wasn’t going to get a new contract and is unlikely to be missed. If Tyler Walker can deliver a more consistent game his arrival will further improve the squad for the rest of the season.
Paul Downing rarely featured for Pompey, particularly while Jack Whatmough was fit and was probable a mistake from the start. Hayden Carted could well be a far more capable replacement and almost certainly cannot be any worse.
Synes synd på Bass
One has to feel sorry for Alex Bass, as he is developing into a good keeper, certainly at this level. Game time at Bradford will hopefully give him more experience and confidence. Bazunu is likely to go back to Man City at the end of the season and or be loaned out to somebody else so the question is whether Bass will return as Pompey’s No 1 or if Webber will take that slot. I believe Webber will be one for the future.
Overall, Pompey have had their summer clear out 6 months early and managed to bring in replacements who should further improve the squad.
Vi skal slite med å få en play-off-plass
We do however appear to have a problem in midfield with injuries and do not have the necessary cover. This is affecting our results. We may have to bring in “out of contract players” which is quite a risk.
Despite strengthening the squad we will struggle to get a play-off place given the competition – Rotherham and Wigan are looking very strong for the automatic play offs closely followed by the likes of Sunderland Wycombe and Oxford. Sheffield Wednesday, MK Dons and Plymouth are also challenging which doesn’t leave that much room for us.
Jack Whatmough er nå i Wigan, som styrer mot opprykk.