Regan Poole fitness claim emerges after Portsmouth v West Brom

Portsmouth are doing the right thing by making Regan Poole play friendly games as he returned from an ACL injury, according to Dr Rajpal Brar.

The injury expert expects his return to be handled with conservatism as he played 14 minutes of the 3-0 defeat against West Brom on 15 September.

This comes after The News reported on 16 September that Pompey are looking to ramp up the 26-year-old's fitness with a behind-closed-doors friendly with Havant & Waterlooville.

Discussing his situation exclusively with Portsmouth News, Brar, a doctor in physical therapy and a sports scientist, said:

"My reading is that the club and physios are being conservative and making sure he’s ready to return to regular first-team football following his ACL injury and extended layoff.

"I imagine his return has been handled with similar conservatism and allowing ample time for him to bed in and find his fitness and confidence.

"Playing friendlies is the right way to get him up to speed with the rigours of the professional game and I can see why the club would want to do that."

Regan Poole's return is a huge boost for Portsmouth

John Mousinho will have been delighted to see Poole return against West Brom but will be aware that he's not yet ready to be thrown into the deep end.

The club will analyse his fitness in the friendly before making a call as to how many minutes he'd possibly be ready to play for the first team.

It's been a lengthy absence following a serious injury and hopefully, he manages to stay fit for the rest of the season.

In other Portsmouth news, Don Goodman praises Pompey despite their winless start.

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