View: Callum Lang gives John Mousinho welcome headache for Portsmouth v Bolton Wanderers
Callum Lang is set to give Portsmouth boss John Mousinho a welcome headache for the showdown with Bolton Wanderers.
Mousinho confirmed last week that the Bolton fixture had been pencilled in for Lang to make his return after a month on the sidelines.
Pompey have coped well in the attacker’s absence, having won four and drawn one of their five League One fixtures he has missed.
Callum Lang could feature for Portsmouth versus Bolton
While it is unlikely Lang will slot back into the side should he indeed be fit, he will provide another strong option from the substitutes’ bench.
Lang boasted a 75-per-cent pass accuracy in his most recent outing, a 0-0 draw with Blackpool, completing nine of his 12 passes [Sofascore].
The 25-year-old also did the defensive side of the game well, having won six of his nine duels across his near-hour on the field.
That is certainly a strength of Lang’s, as he ranks in the top one per cent of attacking midfielders for interceptions [FBref] across leagues of similar stature to League One.
Lang is in the side to make something happen in the final third, and his impact in that regard is also reflected in the bare statistics.
With 0.96 goal involvements per 90 minutes in League One this season – four goals, one assist – he leads the way among Portsmouth players.
For context, Kusini Yengi is next on that list with 0.88, followed by Colby Bishop on 0.63.
It may well be that an unchanged XI is named as Pompey look for the win that seals promotion, but Lang’s expected return certainly gives Mousinho something to think about.
In other Portsmouth news, the club have a simple transfer decision to make on Sean Raggett after what he said.
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