‘Matt Ritchie done at Portsmouth’ after what he did in win v Blackburn Rovers
Matt Ritchie did himself no favours as he started for Portsmouth in the 1-0 win against Blackburn Rovers on Saturday.
Pompey welcomed Valerien Ismael’s side to Fratton Park on 29 March and secured a much-needed three points to help avoid relegation.
A first-half Jacob Murphy strike proved to be the difference for John Mousinho and Co. as a seven-point gap opened up to the bottom three.
Despite this positivity, there will be questions being asked of Ritchie, who did little to prove himself despite starting against Rovers.
Ritchie struggled again for Portsmouth v Blackburn Rovers
The 35-year-old signed with plenty of excitement as the experienced winger finally got the chance to play for his boyhood club.
The former Newcastle United man has made 33 Championship appearances since returning but has only registered four goals and no assists in that time.
| Stat (Championship 24/25) | Matt Ritchie |
| Appearances | 33 |
| Starts | 24 |
| Minutes played | 1784 |
| Goals | 4 |
| Assists | 0 |
The winger didn’t add to that tally in his most recent outing against Blackburn while putting in a poor performance on the whole.
As a result, it wasn’t a surprise to see Mousinho take the Scot off and replaced him with Jordan Williams with over 20 minutes to go on the south coast.
In his 68 minutes on the pitch, Ritchie was only able to clock up 37 touches and with that also had a 0 zero per cent cross success with his four attempts.
The ex-Bournemouth man failed to create a single chance or get a shot off while also being caught offside once, which isn’t good enough.
Ritchie could soon leave Portsmouth
Considering the quality that Murphy has shown this season on the opposite flank, it is a blow to have such little positivity surrounding Ritchie.
This could see Mousinho seriously consider his options in the upcoming transfer window to bring in a new, more youthful option.
The returns of Callum Lang and Paddy Lane will also represent a huge boost for the Scottish winger, who can become more of a mentor figure rather than a regular starter.
This is more likely to help Pompey moving into next season, as opposed to hindering them like it appeared to do against Blackburn.