Abu Kamara makes Hull City admission ahead of Portsmouth return
Portsmouth won promotion one year ago on Wednesday, sparking jubilant scenes Fratton Park had not seen for a long, long time. A generation in fact.
Many of the key players involved in winning the League One title under John Mousinho last season have been carried into the Championship season. Some have excelled; some have struggled; some have spent a huge chunk of the campaign on the treatment table.
Abu Kamara – loaned from Good Friday’s opponents Norwich City – was superb last term, registering 21 goal contributions in all competitions.
Kamara then joined Hull City for a £4.5million fee last summer, despite Portsmouth’s interest in retaining the winger on a permanent deal.
Kamara looks ahead to huge Fratton reunion
This time last year, Kamara was on the Fratton Park turf, draped in a “we’re going up” EFL flag, surrounded by thousands of Portsmouth fans urging the board to “sign him up”.
It’s a sentiment still prevalent now, with many Blues fans gutted when he instead made the move to Hull, who have become Championship survival rivals.
Portsmouth were transparent about the events leading up to losing out on Kamara. The 21-year-old had simply become unaffordable.
Kamara finally makes his first return to Fratton on the final day of the season (3 May), no less. Pompey and Hull sit just a point apart in the Championship, and the finale could be absolutely massive with last season’s South Coast hero behind enemy lines.
Having scored a crucial deflected goal late on against Coventry City to secure a 1-1 draw on Monday (14 April), Kamara spoke to BBC Radio Humberside the following day about the battle for safety.
“The point is everything. It’s another one on the board,” Kamara insisted.
“We’re closer to our goal. That point could be the difference on the last day.”
Portsmouth could beat Hull on last day and sign Kamara
As previously touched on, while it seems a pipe dream for now, Portsmouth could feasibly get their man a year on should a specific set of circumstances play out.
Kamara was never going to spend another season outside of the top two divisions after having clearly shown he was above League One level.
With Pompey unable to afford the fee Hull had stumped up, now Kamara is charged with looking to keep the Tigers in the division – potentially at his old side’s expense.
| POS | Championship table 2024-25 | PLD | PTS | GD |
| 19 | PORTSMOUTH | 42 | 46 | -16 |
| 20 | Hull | 42 | 45 | -9 |
| 21 | Derby | 42 | 43 | -10 |
| 22 | Cardiff | 42 | 42 | -21 |
| 23 | Luton | 42 | 40 | -26 |
| 24 | Plymouth | 42 | 40 | -38 |
The winger has 11 goal contributions so far this term, and will certainly not spend another year in the third tier if Hull go down; his club will also want to recoup some funds on their saleable assets.
This could be where the Blues step in and secure him for a cheaper fee. It seems far-fetched now, but victory over Hull on the final day could provide a fruitful summer at Fratton.