Following Everton's late winner against Arsenal, Pompey are now 4 points behind 6th position in the table with 8 games left to play. This would usually be a gap that could be closed if the chasing team were in good form. But then Pompey are far from good form having still only won one league game in the calendar year and failing to find the net in six out of the last seven games, including the last three.
The performance at Reading was probably Pompey's best away performance since Boxing Day when we beat West Ham 2-1. The draw yesterday meant that we gained a point on Bolton in 5th and pulled slightly further away from Blackburn who are just behind us after losing at home to West Ham. Of course, we also kept Reading within striking distance.
The bad news is that Tottenham beat woeful Watford and as previously mentioned Everton continued to live up to their jammy reputation with a last minute winner against the Gunners. This means we're now 4 points from a guaranteed place in Europe and 3 points from a possible UEFA Cup place should Man United and Chelsea contest the FA Cup Final.
I haven't completely ruled out the possibility of European football at Fratton Park next season like some fans, but we'd need an exceptional run of form from the game at Fulham, right 'til the end of the season. It's not impossible as we've managed it before, twice in the last three campaigns in fact. The obvious problem is the fact our fixture list is pretty nasty and our players couldn't score in a brothel right now.
But then would failing to qualify for Europe be a blessing in disguise?
Steve Coppell made a good point last night about the burden UEFA Cup football could bring to Reading next season and we're in the same boat. What's the point in entering the competition if you don't have the squad to cope with the extra games?
We all know what happened to Ipswich that year after they finished 5th and then got relegated the following season. We don't have the biggest squad and we don't want to be faced with another relegation battle do we? Of course, that's presuming an awful lot of doom and gloom. But even if we did qualify for Europe, are the likes of Litex Lovech and Eagaleo really worth getting excited about?
I don't believe our season is a write off just yet, but failure to beat Fulham in two weeks and surely we'll have to settle for mid-table mediocrity? Not that it would be a massive shame, considering our relegation battles of the past.