| |
Club Focus - Portsmouth - Nightmare season still may have happy ending
While optimism was in short supply at Fratton Park this time nine months ago, no-one could have predicted the car-crash campaign that was forthcoming. Two managers, four owners, one administrator and just seven league wins later, we look back at a season of turmoil and farce.
Indeed, the signs were ominous early on. Paul Hart was hardly the fans’ choice for the managerial hot-seat, despite securing Premier League safety at the back end of the previous campaign - albeit in rather uninspiring manner. The now-Crystal Palace manager endured a torrid time on the south coast, as the side lost their opening seven league games, and secured just two wins in 13 Premier League encounters, leaving Pompey rooted to the bottom of the table. The fact that the team, under Hart, put in some of their best displays of the season is largely forgotten, but few could argue with his sacking following defeat at Stoke City in November. That 1-0 reverse at the Britannia Stadium somewhat summed up Hart’s reign, as his side outplayed and outfought the highly-regarded Potters, before squandering a spot-kick and suffering a late sucker-punch. Many regarded Hart’s preferred formation as his downfall, with the former Nottingham Forest boss often opting for the midfield diamond system. Unfortunately, although this often gave the side a decent footing in most of their games, the simple truth of the matter was that the team lacked any kind of width, and thus were usually void of any threat. Often the team relied solely on star performer Kevin-Prince Boateng - who occupied the tip of the diamond - for their creative spark, but although talented, the former Tottenham Hotspur man simply could not carry that burden by himself.
But Hart’s already difficult job was almost impossible from the start as off-field distractions undermined his every turn. Even as Hart left, following an unspectacular nine-month reign, he had served under three different owners. Pompey’s now infamous ownership situation has been the season’s sideshow and Hart was in the thick of it. Sacha Gaydamak - the man whose reckless spending landed the club in the horrific situation they currently find themselves - sold the club at the end of August to media-friendly Sulaiman Al Fahim, following a lengthy takeover process. But Al Fahim’s endless promises never came to fruition and he soon sold the club to Ali al-Faraj, who although, being at the complete opposite end of the spectrum in terms of media friendliness, was obviously cut from the same cloth when it came to actually investing money in the club. The farce was such that al-Faraj was never actually seen, leading to him being dubbed - Ali al-Mirage.
By this time, Pompey were rock bottom of the table with their financial situation spiralling out of control. Former Chelsea boss Avram Grant took control of first team affairs following Hart’s dismissal but the Israeli has endured a similarly impossible task since. Following an early resurgence which saw home wins over Burnley and Liverpool respectively, a lacklustre Boxing Day defeat at fellow strugglers West Ham saw the side go on an eight game winless Premier League run which, coupled with the later nine-point deduction, meant survival was never really on the cards. Disappointingly, Pompey, under Grant, have looked a strong outfit at times this year. After Grant introduced the 4-3-3 system with Frederic Piquionne the main striker, flanked by two pacey wide-men and Jamie O’Hara pulling the strings in midfield, the side looked to have found a decent formula. Unfortunately, by this time administration had kicked in and the club had to sell some key players in January in order to just keep the club afloat. Indeed, the club had also gone through another owner change, this time after Balram Chainrai activated a clause in his loan agreement to al-Faraj, which after the Hong Kong businessman grew ever more concerned about, he seized control of the club. This was soon followed by the inevitable administration plunge, and debts as high as £138m have since been revealed.
Luckily, an unlikely F.A Cup run came to the club’s rescue as they wallowed at the point of no return. The memorable 4-1 demolition of arch-rivals Southampton in the fifth round proved the inspiration for a stunning surge of belief and renewed optimism around the club. Grant became an instant hero off the back of this game and an earlier draw against Sunderland where he reacted angrily to a red card given to his side. It was a moment of raw passion and emotion, a show of fight for the cause, and from there, his relationship with the Fratton Park faithful has only grown. Despite the fact Grant has fared only slightly better than he predecessor in terms of results, his spirit and attitude has galvanised the club, as he led them to an F.A Cup final berth. The semi-final victory over Tottenham will be reminisced about for many years to come, as would some kind of miraculous triumph over Premier League champions Chelsea on Saturday.
But apart from the enviable day out at Wembley for the seasons’ showpiece event, Pompey can now only plan for a season in the Championship. With the club still in administration, and still unaware as to its ownership situation and possible points deduction for next campaign, everything is again very much in the air. What’s more, it is highly likely a large majority of the playing staff will leave too, many of who were brought in on loan - due to the club’s precarious financial state - so they will simply return to their parent club. But, many others will be sold in order to balance the books, and shift the big-earners off the wage bill.
But, for now Pompey return to English football’s second tier, where they had been at home for so many years. The club has been battered form pillar to post throughout this saga, and they must now look optimistically to a summer that will be more important than any other.
 Watch all Portsmouth matches live on your computer - click here
See the full list of OLBG's free Football Tips here.
Related Articles
| |