Cullen reveals Portsmouth’s secret weapon against Wrexham and Birmingham City
Portsmouth face a big challenge next season if they are to avoid a relegation battle in the Championship.
Pompey have already lost multiple key names from the 2024/25 campaign before the transfer window has even opened.
Rob Atkinson has returned to Bristol City after his successful loan spell at Fratton Park, with Freddie Potts also waving goodbye.
Despite these losses, Portsmouth CEO Any Cullen is positive that Pompey can take on the Championship’s richer clubs.
Portsmouth’s recruitment is key to competing with Wrexham and Birmingham
One of Portsmouth’s biggest challenges next year will be the teams coming into the Championship.
Both Wrexham and Birmingham have significant American financial backing, which saw them promoted into the second tier with relative ease.
This, combined with the fact that Charlton Athletic are Portsmouth’s bogey side, has caused concern that Pompey could be set for the drop.
| Championship 2025/26 new additions | Reason |
| Southampton | Relegation |
| Leicester City | Relegation |
| Ipswich Town | Relegation |
| Birmingham City | Promotion |
| Wrexham | Promotion |
| Charlton Athletic | Promotion |
However, Cullen has now attempted to ease fears, pointing towards the South Coast club’s excellent recruitment as a way for Pompey to compete.
He told The News (28 May): “The promoted teams is going to be another issue which could potentially distort the league, we understand that.
“Birmingham would have been really strong financially, whichever league they were in last season. They blew League One away in terms of the points they achieved, and they spent well.
“But it’s not just about the level of spend you have or the highest budget, it’s the way you recruit and the way you spend that money.
“It’s well documented that we were towards the lower end last season in terms of the resources available to us, but we finished in a good position up the league.
“You put that into context with the teams who went down with probably far bigger resources than we had.
“Partly, that is down to the way you recruit, along with other factors as well. That’s notwithstanding the dreadful luck we had last season with injuries, that’s not just with the number of injuries, but the concentration in key positions.
“That makes last year’s achievement particularly impressive.”
Portsmouth need to take advantage of the free agent market
Last summer, Portsmouth were excellent at bringing in players who were out of contract.
Josh Murphy has become a star at Pompey since his free transfer from Oxford United and was key to the South Coast club’s survival.
Now, this has to be repeated this summer if Portsmouth are going to push up the Championship table.
It is clear that John Mousinho’s side are not going to be able to compete with their second-tier rivals financially. Therefore, they must be smart in the market, with loans a major option.
With multiple stars now being released by clubs up and down the English pyramid, Pompey must act fast if they are to secure players who will improve their squad.