BBC broadcaster drops ‘huge’ Portsmouth admission in fresh relegation verdict
Andrew Moon has shared a “huge” Portsmouth admission as John Mousinho’s side look to survive in the Championship.
Pompey are just four points above the Championship drop zone with eight games left to play.
After a run of four wins from six games, it looked as though Mousinho’s side were set to avoid a relegation dogfight. However, back-to-back defeats against Plymouth and Preston have dragged Portsmouth back into the mix once again.
The 2-1 defeat to Preston at Deepdale on Saturday (15 March) left Mousinho fuming with the Portsmouth players. Therefore, it feels as though the March international break might have come at the perfect time, as suggested by Moon who has shared a “huge” admission about an upcoming match at Fratton Park.
Portsmouth set to host Blackburn at Fratton Park
Mousinho has a couple of weeks to regroup before his side host Blackburn Rovers in the Championship on Saturday (29 March).
It is the first of eight games which will define Portsmouth’s season. Luckily for Pompey, a lot of their games look rather favourable on paper, which could be key in the fight for survival.
Of the teams Portsmouth have left to play, only Coventry City are above Blackburn in the Championship. As a result, if Mousinho’s side can get a result in this upcoming clash, it would be a big step toward securing Portsmouth’s place in the Championship next season.
| Fixture | Venue | Date |
| V Blackburn Rovers | Fratton Park | 29 March |
| V Millwall | The Den | 5 April |
| V Coventry | Coventry Building Society Arena | 9 April |
| V Derby County | Fratton Park | 12 April |
| V Norwich City | Carrow Road | 18 April |
| V Watford | Fratton Park | 21 April |
| V Sheffield Wednesday | Hillsborough | 26 April |
| V Hull City | Fratton Park | 3 May |
And BBC Radio Solent’s Portsmouth commentator Moon has emphasised just how big this upcoming Championship clash is.
Moon wrote via BBC Sport (21 March), “A two-week break might be exactly what Portsmouth needed after the loss to Preston. Of course, there is frustration that the consecutive defeats in winnable games have seen their cushion over the relegation zone down to just four points. It is not a bad time to take stock though.
“Back in November, Pompey would have given anything to be in this position. Even though Derby and Luton are making a recovery at the bottom, one point a game in the Blues final eight matches would almost certainly be enough to stay up.
“Coventry away looks challenging but the rest are fairly kind with no matches remaining against sides in the top four.
“Blackburn at home now feels like a huge match. Boss John Mousinho is right there is still plenty of work to do to secure survival but most of the bottom eight would gladly swap positions with Portsmouth right now.”
Mousinho needs to get Portsmouth back on track
It wasn’t long ago that Portsmouth beat top-of-the-table Leeds United 1-0 at Fratton Park. Therefore, there is no reason why this set of players cannot produce a similar result against Blackburn.
Portsmouth will be desperate to survive in the Championship, a feat which would be made more impressive after a £7.2million reveal, and beating Blackburn would set the tone for the rest of the season.