Portsmouthvs.Coventry

The Sky Blues head into the weekend in 15th place in the standings, while Pompey are languishing in the Championship relegation zone.

Match preview

Pompey made a poor start to their first Championship campaign since 2011-12, winning one, drawing six and losing seven of their opening 14 league games.

However, they appeared to turn a corner with a four-game unbeaten run, recording home victories against Preston North End and Bristol City, either side of an away draw against Swansea City, before they had to settle for a goalless scoreline in their meeting with Norwich City at Fratton Park.

Unfortunately for Pompey, the majority of the confidence built from that unbeaten run was lost in last Friday's forgettable trip to Pride Park, where they conceded three goals in the first half-hour of a 4-0 defeat to Derby County.

John Mousinho's side dropped into the bottom three as a result of that defeat, with a point separating them from safety ahead of the weekend's round of fixtures.

After seeing their winless away run stretch to five matches, Pompey will be looking forward to returning to Fratton Park, where they are unbeaten in three games and have lost just once in six home matches.

Lampard has made an encouraging start to his fifth job in football management, having seen his side avoid defeat in one of his four matches in charge since he was named as Mark Robins's successor in November.

The former Chelsea boss began his tenure with a 2-2 draw against Cardiff City, before he celebrated his first win as Coventry manager with a narrow 1-0 away victory against Millwall.

After being stopped in their tracks by a defeat to West Bromwich Albion, the Sky Blues returned to winning ways in last Saturday's home game against Hull City, coming from a goal down to win 2-1 thanks to goals from Ephron Mason-Clark and Jack Rudoni.

That result ended Coventry's three-game wait for a win at the Coventry Building Society Arena, moving them seven points clear of the drop zone.

The Sky Blues will now look to clinch back-to-back victories, but while they may have claimed a 1-0 victory in their most recent encounter with Portsmouth, they have failed to win on any of their last four trips to Fratton Park.

Portsmouth Championship form:

L

W

D

W

D

L

Coventry City Championship form:

D

L

D

W

L

W

Team News

Pompey are still having to cope with a lengthy injury list which includes Kusini Yengi, Mark O'Mahony, Conor Shaughnessy, Jordan Williams, Ibane Bowat and Jacob Farrell.

Regan Poole was an unused substitute against Derby due to a hamstring problem, and the defender remains a major doubt for Saturday's contest.

Zak Swanson is pushing for his first start since October 2 after returning from injury to feature as a substitute in the last three matches.

Meanwhile, Coventry's top scorer Haji Wright remains unavailable for selection after missing the previous six matches through injury.

Wright is joined on the sidelines by goalkeeper Ben Wilson, and Lampard does not expect the pair to be involved in the final three matches of 2024.

Mason-Clark will be looking to continue his impressive form after scoring three goals in four matches since Lampard took over the reins at Coventry.

Portsmouth possible starting lineup:

Schmid; Swanson, McIntyre, Pack, Ogilvie; Potts, Dozzell; Ritchie, Lang, Murphy; Bishop

Coventry City possible starting lineup:

Collins; Van Ewijk, Thomas, Binks, Dasilva; Torp, Sheaf; Sakamoto, Rudoni, Mason-Clark; Bassette

We say: Portsmouth 1-1 Coventry City

Written by

Ben Sully

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