Portsmouth told to analyse Fratton Park injury trend as doctor reacts to crushing news
Portsmouth will be relieved to go into the November international break off the back of an impressive 1-0 win against Middlesbrough.
John Mousinho’s side were struggling for form before this scrappy win, and they will still be desperate to welcome Nicolas Schmid, Josh Murphy, Conor Shaughnessy and Callum Lang back into the team.
Shaughnessy and Lang have both suffered with persistent hamstring injuries over the past 12 months.
Jordan Williams, Kusini Yengi and Harvey Blair have all suffered nasty hamstring issues during the last year as well.
So, is there something that Portsmouth are doing to cause so many hamstring problems, or is it simply a coincidence?
Sports injury expert questions the workload put on Portsmouth players
Portsmouth have a tricky run of fixtures to navigate in October, and they could do with all hands on deck.
Sadly, both Shaughnessy and Lang aren’t expected back on the pitch until December.
Dr Rajpal Brar, an expert in sports injuries, says that Portsmouth’s issues with hamstring injuries could be down to an assortment of reasons.
Speaking exclusively to Pompey News, he said: “It could be a heavy cumulative workload on players, it could be a playing style that dictates a lot of higher intensity or quantity of sprints. It could be something with the training or gym work – or lack thereof.
“It could be just a coincidence as well.
“If there’s anything I would recommend, it would be to analyse all the possible contributing factors to see if any pattern emerges.”
Portsmouth’s squad players need to step up when they get an opportunity
It always seems to feel like a ‘crisis’ when Portsmouth miss a few key players at the same time. The reality is: all other teams in the Championship have injury problems.
Unfortunately, with Portsmouth, there isn’t a £5million+ player waiting on the substitutes bench to replace an injured player.
While some Championship teams have this luxury, Pompey certainly do not.
| Player | Injury |
| Callum Lang | Hamstring |
| Nicolas Schmid | Hand |
| Conor Shaughnessy | Hamstring |
| Thomas Waddingham | Quad |
| Josh Murphy | Ankle |
The reason why first-team injuries feel so problematic for Portsmouth is their lack of adequate strength in depth across the squad.
Pompey have tried several different options on the right wing since Lang got injured, but nobody has made that spot their own.
The jury’s still out on whether Josh Knight can replace Shaughnessy effectively at the back.
More injuries will be inevitable as the long Championship season continues. The only way to cope is to ensure that they have strong players ready to step in.
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