Andy Awford reveals what Portsmouth will ‘absolutely love’ about playing Middlesbrough
Portsmouth welcome table-topping Middlesbrough to Fratton Park on Saturday for what could be their most difficult match of the season.
Middlesbrough will go into the match as strong favourites, having gone unbeaten so far this season.
Meanwhile, Pompey are struggling with a small injury crisis and haven’t won in their last four games.
Portsmouth are hoping to have Josh Murphy back from his ankle injury, but they’ll still be without the likes of Callum Lang, Nicolas Schmid and Conor Shaughnessy for some time yet.
Nevertheless, some pundits remain confident about Pompey getting a positive result against the league leaders.
Andy Awford explains why Portsmouth will ‘absolutely love’ playing against Middlesbrough
Despite Portsmouth’s disappointing 2-2 draw with Watford earlier in the week, former Portsmouth defender Andy Awford backed the team to get a positive result on Saturday.
Speaking on Pompey+, he explained that Portsmouth fans always seem to motivate the team to perform better in matches when they’re the underdog, using last season’s victory over eventual champions Leeds as an example.
He said: “Middlesbrough are top of the league. They’ve had a great start and we’ll be underdogs, and our lot love that.
“I remember back in the day with Harry [Redknapp] and Man United came down here, and they loved it. Absolutely loved it.
“And it’ll be like that here again on Saturday. Middlesbrough come into town. They’ll be top of the league. It’ll be like Leeds again. It wouldn’t surprise me if we go and turn them over.”
Portsmouth will need to play with intensity to match Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough may be top of the league, but they can be vulnerable defensively if Portsmouth apply enough pressure.
Pompey started the match against Watford with impressive intensity, and they got their reward when Yang Min-hyeok opened the scoring after just six minutes.
It’s only when Pompey turned down the pressure that Watford started to get back into the game.
| Portsmouth | Middlesbrough | |
| Championship record | 2 wins, 3 draws, 3 losses | 5 wins, 3 draws, 0 losses |
| Goals scored | 7 | 12 |
| Goals conceded | 9 | 5 |
| Shots on goal | 103 | 86 |
| Clean sheets | 3 | 4 |
Mousinho will be keen for his team to play with the same intensity for 90 minutes against Middlesbrough on Saturday.
When Pompey move the ball quickly and work hard to win it back, that can force their opponents into mistakes. It’s this type of play that spurs up the crowd and helps to create the atmosphere seen during famous victories at Fratton Park.
The 1-0 victory over Leeds last season is just one example of these memorable home victories. Portsmouth do have the players to create another morale-boosting win against Middlesbrough on Saturday, but they’ll need to be at their best.
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