Last season Pompey were renowned for having an excellent home record, one that only saw us lose three times and beat most other teams in the league. This season has been different and whilst we remain unbeaten at home, we have only taken 11 points out the 21 available.
But why is that? Here's my take on things.
The Formation
I said it when we were struggling to win at home two seasons ago under Perrin and to a degree, the same statement applies now.
"Playing one up front at home doesn't work" although due to the quality we have this season it's a good idea to add "against strong defences" to that statement.
Last Saturday's game against Everton was a prime example of this, with Benjani struggling to play up front on his own against two powerhouses in Yobo and Lescott. Benji is strong enough to play against the likes of Ingimarsson and Duberry but a strong defence will keep him out.
There's a lack of support when we're playing a more attacking style at home, and with Benjani having to do a lot of work up front on his own he can often end up giving away needless fouls. (Fun Fact: Benjani has committed 31 fouls this season, making him the joint 4th "dirtiest" player in the league. Sean Davis, a defensive midfielder, has conceded five less.)
Playing an orthodox 4-4-2 system has worked better for us this season. We beat Bolton comfortably with it, played a good second half against United when using it and were unlucky not to win against City a few weeks back.
We don't create many chances at home with the 4-5-1/4-3-3 and when we do, we don't take them. That includes missed penalties and close range toe pokes...
The Opposition
We have beaten Bolton and Reading at Fratton Park this season in what were relatively comfortable victories in the end. The only other team we have scored against at home in the league is in the 1-1 draw with Manchester United.
We have drawn the other four games 0-0 against Liverpool, West Ham, Manchester City and Everton. To add insult to those results, we could have won two of those with penalties that were saved in the Liverpool and West Ham games.
But the bottom line is this, these four teams are good sides and all have good defensive records. (Fun Fact #2: West Ham actually have a better defensive record than Pompey. 12 goals conceded to our 13, although they have played a game less.)
Everton and Man City have the next-best defences in the league after Pompey, so it was always going to be difficult to find a way past their back five. Next up is Tottenham, who concede goals for fun so hopefully we will not see our sixth 0-0 at home this season.
The Expectation
We are now becoming one of those clubs where our home record now strikes fear into the opposition and they now often come to Fratton Park and set their stall out for a draw.
You only have to look at how happy the Man City players were when they got a draw. Unfortunately, our reputation means that all the relegation battlers are going to play for a point, and I expect even the better teams might too.
Because we're a good side now, we're turning up at Fratton Park expecting a win against almost every team in the league. That could be a negative as fans could get frustrated easily and in the worst circumstances - turn on their own players en masse. The absolute last thing I want to see at Fratton is "St. James' Park syndrome."
The Solution
So how do we put an end to our goal famine?
The good news, as mentioned earlier, is that we play Tottenham in our next home game and their defence is sieve-like. They can also score goals at will so would suggest sticking with the current system to contain them as we should create a bucketful of chances against their laughable defence.
I would also stick with the same system for the next game against their North London counterparts as Arsenal will attack you no matter who you are, and so soaking up the pressure and counter-attacking them would be better than going out to attack and getting caught out.
However, Middlesbrough are the next team to visit and I can guarantee that they will play for a draw. It's against teams like Boro that I believe we should switch to the 4-4-2 that will work better in my opinion.
But this is Harry's dilemma to solve and he's the one that needs to find the Viagra to cure our impotence at home. Perhaps he should consult Pele?