Pompey take on Barnet at Fratton Park tomorrow eager to put the disappointing draw with Accrington Stanley behind them.
Team News
Paul Cook has assured people that he will make changes to his side following Saturday's lacklustre showing with Conor Chaplin guaranteed to start. Gareth Evans and Kyle Bennett's starting berths are at risk with the likes of Matt Tubbs and Adam McGurk waiting for their chance but Jayden Stockley will be missing after the birth of his child. Brian Murphy should be fit to return to the starting eleven after being replaced by Paul Jones at half-time last week.
Martin Allen has stated that goalkeeper Graham Stack and strikers Kevin Lisbie and Shaun Batt will be missing through injury but former Pompey defender Bondz N'Gala and forward John Akinde will return to Fratton Park and start for the visitors.
The Match
The question most Portsmouth supporters will be asking before the match tomorrow is who replaces the underperforming players and just how many will be culled.
It's likely that Evans could be at the largest risk with Chaplin coming in for him and although Kyle Bennett has been poor in the last few matches his pace could earn him a stay of execution as Barnet's backline aren't too quick.
Stockley will miss the match but it may have been tactically astute to withdraw him for Tubbs anyway as there were too many long balls played last weekend and like Stanley, Barnet's physical centre backs will have no trouble dealing with them. A front four of Tubbs, Roberts, Chaplin and Bennett should cause more problems than the attacking quartet last Saturday.
The other six players should remain the same unless Cook opts to change his formation. He could opt to bring Adam Webster in and play three centre backs with two wing backs but he's more likely to stick with his trusted 4-2-3-1 formation for now. Having said that, tomorrow's match may well be when we discover if the Blues boss has a plan B or not.
Bondz N'Gala is a player who divided the Pompey fans although most would agree his defending left a lot to be desired at times due to his lack of positional sense and pace. However, he was always a threat from set-pieces so hopefully there won't be too many silly free kicks given away or corners conceded tomorrow.
John Akinde somehow managed to score 32 goals for the Conference champions last season, a stat which baffled many Portsmouth followers as he was one of the worst strikers to play for the club in recent years. Still, he can be a physical presence and likes to win penalties with his runs into the box so he can't be taken too lightly.
Overall, this is a game that Pompey should be looking to win as long as the attacking players return to form after a disappointing performance against Accrington. Barnet are yet to take a point from their travels so far this season and hopefully that will continue after tomorrow.
Predicted Starting Line-Ups
Pompey
GK: Brian MURPHY
RB: Ben DAVIES
CB: Christian BURGESS
CB: Matt CLARKE
LB: Enda STEVENS
DM: Michael DOYLE
DM: Nigel ATANGANA
RM: Gary ROBERTS
AM: Conor CHAPLIN
LM: Kyle BENNETT
CF: Matt TUBBS
Barnet
GK: Jamie STEPHENS
RB: Elliot JOHNSON
CB: Bira DEMBELE
CB: Bondz N'GALA
LB: Gavin HOYTE
RM: Mauro VILHETE
CM: Sam TOGWELL
CM: Tom CHAMPION
CM: Curtis WESTON
LM: Andy YIADOM
CF: John AKINDE
Last Time: Portsmouth 0 Barnet 1 (League Cup First Round - 11/08/2011)
Championship Pompey were unceremoniously dumped out of the Carling Cup by their League Two opponents as Mark Hughes headed in Mark Marshall's cross to give Barnet a deserved win over Steve Cotterill's men.
My Prediction
Barnet will make this match tough but hopefully the attacking players will have improved enough from last Saturday to put the Bees under some pressure. I can't see this being a classic but I fancy Pompey to edge it.
Portsmouth 1 Barnet 0