Pompey take on lacklustre Yeovil Town at Fratton Park tomorrow looking for another three points to bring them closer to promotion.
Team News
Eoin Doyle looks like he'll be out for the rest of the season with a groin injury whilst Noel Hunt sustained a dislocated shoulder at Hartlepool and is also missing. It looks like Kal Naismith will play up front with Gary Roberts taking his place in midfield as Carl Baker is doubtful due to a hamstring strain.
On-loan Bournemouth midfielder Ben Whitfield is suspended for Yeovil but Otis Khan may recover from an anke injury in time to take part.
The Match
There are only eighteen points left to play for in League Two and tomorrow's match against the lacklustre Glovers is a huge opportunity to pick up another three towards promotion.
Darren Way's team have won just two out of their last 21 games (but have drawn quite a few of those) and recently contrived to throw a away a three goal lead at Exeter in the space of around six minutes. To be blunt, they are not a good side.
Portsmouth, on the other hand, are the form team in the division and will be expected to beat Yeovil regardless of their striker problems. Whilst Conor Chaplin might be the natural replacement for Hunt up front, Paul Cook has virtually confirmed it'll be Naismith starting up top simply because of the rich goalscoring form he's in.
If Pompey win this game like they're supposed to (and that's a worry in itself), they could take a massive stride towards League One with Stevenage and Luton at Colchester and Barnet respectively. Plymouth are away at Crawley and so if they could drop points then it would set up Good Friday's clash beautifully.
But the focus has to remain on getting the win tomorrow. Pompey have been known to drop points in circumstances like this earlier in the season, so any type of win will do.
Predicted Starting Line-Ups
Pompey
GK: David FORDE
RB: Gareth EVANS
CB: Christian BURGESS
CB: Matt CLARKE
LB: Enda STEVENS
DM: Michael DOYLE
DM: Danny ROSE
RM: Jamal LOWE
AM: Gary ROBERTS
LM: Kyle BENNETT
CF: Kal NAISMITH
Yeovil
GK: Artur KRYSIAK
RB: Liam SHEPHARD
CB: Bevis MUGABI
CB: Alex LACEY
LB: Ryan DICKSON
CM: Matt BUTCHER
CM: Matt DOLAN
CM: Kevin DAWSON
RWF: Shayon HARRISON
LWF: Francois ZOKO
CF: Tom EAVES
Last Time: Portsmouth 0 Yeovil Town 0 (League Two - 03/10/2015)
Pompey huffed and puffed but couldn't find their way past a stubborn Glovers defence at Fratton Park.
My Prediction
Pompey seem to have found another level of playing recently whilst Yeovil have been dire, especially away from home. Whilst that can spell trouble, you would have to fancy the Blues to gain another three points tomorrow.
Portsmouth 2 Yeovil Town 0