Portsmouth ace Conor Shaughnessy was named in the PFA Team of the Year last season. (Credit: Imago)

Portsmouth will definitely stay up if Conor Shaughnessy stays fit

Dan is a sports writer and broadcaster, who wrote for Breaking Media Limited's club sites including Pompey News between May 2024 and May 2025. Graduating from the University of Huddersfield in 2018 with First Class Honours in Sports Journalism, Dan has worked with several EFL clubs, as well as with BBC Radio, talkSPORT and TNT Sports. He previously resided in Sydney, Australia, where he continued his career as a freelancer in various sports. Dan was born and raised in Portsmouth, comes from a Pompey-supporting family, and was in attendance at both of the club's FA Cup finals in 2008 and 2010.

Published on:

12 Jan 2025, 12:30 pm

Portsmouth will witness a revamped defensive structure if Conor Shaughnessy can stay fit for the rest of the season upon his return.

The Irishman - who has not played since August after winning last year's Player of the Season award - is nearing a comeback to full training, though will not be considered to play until February (The News, 9 January).

John Mousinho has been tearing his hair out attempting to find the strongest central defensive combination at his disposal, with Pompey regularly following up encouraging clean sheets with catastrophic defensive displays, usually on the road.

Shaughnessy brings an imposing calmness to the Blues' backline, and can earn an extra few points by himself should he once again become a mainstay in the starting XI at Fratton Park.

Shaughnessy return cannot come quickly enough for Portsmouth

The mysterious nature of Shaughnessy's injury woes throughout the season so far has plagued Mousinho and Portsmouth fans alike.

The 28-year-old was initially set back by a calf injury in late August, but several attempted returns to action were pulled away at the 11th hour.

Shaughnessy has, as a result, missed five months of key Championship action while Pompey have defensively struggled, having injured his second calf as he was about to recover from the initial setback.

Conor Shaughnessy was superb for Portsmouth last season

Despite his limited experience in the second tier, Shaughnessy possesses a supreme comfort at the back that while he is not the perfect article, is an improvement on what the Blues currently have available.

As it stands, Portsmouth are doing just, just enough - with Shaughnessy's approaching return, they will become a massively improved side to remain in the league.

In other Portsmouth news, Harry Clout makes his mark with his first-team debut for the Blues.

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