Luke Le Roux has to start, plus ‘bizarre incident’ – Three things learned as Portsmouth lose vs Reading
Portsmouth were dumped out of the Carabao Cup at the first round stage as they were defeated 2-1 by Reading on Tuesday night.
John Mousinho named a heavily rotated team for the visit of the third tier side, who showcased bravery on the ball and turned in an impressive away performance.
Youngster Olutayo Singerr netted for Pompey in stoppage time, but it proved to be little more than a consolation as they were left to rue a three-minute first-half spell that saw them ship two goals.
Nevertheless, Mousinho will have learned plenty about some of his squad players after the display, and with that in mind, Pompey News picks out three things we learned from the defeat.
Le Roux has to start for Portsmouth
Luke Le Roux’s arrival at Portsmouth has created plenty of intrigue, as the midfielder had spent the entirety of his career in Sweden until this summer.
The Fratton Park faithful got their first proper glimpse of the South African in the defeat to Reading, and they will undoubtedly have been pleased with what they saw.
- Le Roux completed more successful passes than any other Pompey player in the Reading defeat
- He also played more accurate passes in the forward zone than any of his teammates
- Le Roux will be hoping to feature more after making his first start in the Carabao Cup
The 25-year-old looked composed and creative with the ball at his feet, and showcased the kind of game intelligence that made it appear as though he had more time than everyone else on the pitch.
Mousinho has some strong options at his disposal at the base of his midfield, but Le Roux certainly did enough to stake a genuine claim for a shirt with his performance on Tuesday night.
Segecic impact will be key for Pompey
Adrian Segecic is already up and running for Portsmouth, having notched his first goal in competitive action for them in the opening day win at Oxford.
The Australian has caught the eye for his constant energy so far, and he managed to lift his team once again in their cup defeat.
The attacker was introduced in the 70th minute, and his arrival onto the pitch coincided with an upturn in performance that almost saw Pompey force an equaliser and take the game to penalties.
Segecic laid on the cross for Singerr’s goal, and he made it clear once again that he was it takes to be a clear player for Portsmouth, both from the start of games, and as an impact from the bench.
Schmid to keep shirt as Killip struggles
Nicolas Schmid has been the undisputed number one at Portsmouth for some time, and that looks unlikely to change any time soon, based on Ben Killip’s performance on Tuesday night.
The 29-year-old could have done little about either of the visitors’ goals, but he could have easily been shown a red card for a bizarre incident that saw him handle the ball outside his penalty area.
The former Barnsley gloveman looked panicked with his distribution for large parts of the game, and he did little to suggest that he will be fighting to take Schmid’s place in the near future.
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