Pompey News

October 2007 - Posts

• Redknapp advises Jol to sell star striker

  Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp has told Tottenham manager Martin Jol that he needs players who want to play for the club and help them out of the drop zone and not players with a bad attitude and has recommended that he would be best off selling Dimitar Berbatov for the sake of the team. Redknapp who is many spurs fans favourite to replace Jol is no stranger to relegation dogfights in his long managerial career and in recent years has worked miracles keeping Portsmouth in the top flight when it looked like they were dead and buried. Writing in his column in The Sun Redknapp wrote :"The very last thing boss Martin Jol needs right now is Dimitar Berbatov spitting his dummy out because he's not in Tottenham's starting team every week. "You only find out the true character of your players when the chips are down and the pressure is on. And we all saw what Berbatov is made of when he was sat sulking on the bench at Newcastle the other night with a face like a big baby. "Everyone knows what a terrific player the Bulgarian can be. He showed what he is capable of with 23 goals for Spurs last season. But he's not the striker he was a year ago and, from what I've seen, he looks to be disinterested and playing for himself rather than his team. "His attitude is terrible and his behaviour at St James' Park sent out all the wrong signals. Maybe he's sulking because he didn't get a move to Manchester United in the summer. "But he's done himself absolutely no favours on that account because I know for a fact Alex Ferguson would never stand for any player who behaves the way Berbatov has done this week. When your team is in trouble you need the big characters to stand up and show some b*******. "That's just what Robbie Keane has done for Spurs and Berbatov should show the same attitude. I have always believed that when you lose a player's support you get him out as quickly as possible. No matter how good, you're better off without him." RSS Subscribe |  Del.icio.us | Digg It |  Reddit |  Technorati Posted Oct 25 2007, 07:05 AM by JenniP with no comments Filed under: Harry Redknapp, Tottenham Hotspurs

• Pompey push past lacklustre Wigan

  An away game at the JJB was never going to be an easy outing. But an inspired Pompey side did just enough to notch up their fourth consecutive win in the Premier League and take their points tally to 18, and increasing Wigan's goal less streak to over 5 hours of football. With no score after 80 minutes, the match was headed for a dull 0-0 draw when Benjani Mwaruwari scored with a neat near-post finish from Sulley Muntari's inviting cross. Five minutes later, Glen Johnson made a strong run from the right flank, cut in and drove a low shot home past the hapless Kirkland. Wigan started the game brighter of the two teams. Paul Scharner hit the post with a header as early as three minutes into the game. The first half was a bit of a stop start affair - Glen Johnson and Antoine Sibierski both shrugged off minor injuries to continue for their respective teams. After a strong start to the half, the tempo dropped drastically. Neither side had a decent chance after that in the first 45 with Kranjcar's long shot being the only shot of note for Pompey in the first forty-five. The second half saw the injured Sibierski being replaced by Julius Aghahowa who managed to get himself a yellow card less than a minute later after clattering into Sol Campbell. Pompey were always the better side but failed to convert the possession into clear cut chances. On 63 minutes, Suley Muntari's cracking free kick came back of the post - Pompey's best chance thus far. Wigan sat back and soaked up incessant Pompey pressure. So it was no surprise when a quality cross from Muntari was converted by Benjani on 81 minutes to give Pompey the crucial first goal. And the win was sealed with a finely taken goal by Glen Johnson. Wigan 0 – Pompey 2 (Benjani 80, Johnson 86) Attendance 17695 Booked Wigan Portsmouth Bramble, Aghahowa Campbell, Muntari, Davis RSS Subscribe |  Del.icio.us | Digg It |  Reddit |  Technorati Posted Oct 20 2007, 05:46 PM by JenniP with 1 comment(s) Filed under: Match Reports, Portsmouth, Wigan

• New Pompey training ground takes a step closer to approval

  Pompey's new training complex at Titchfield has moved a step closer ahead after a group of dormice threatened to stop the project. The club announced its plans for a new purpose build training complex back in Feburary at the former Titchfield Golf and Fishing site; however the planning application was put on hold due to concerns about the environmental impact of the plans. An environmental survey was done of the side and found the presence of dormice which are a protected species which threatened to red card the project. However since then the club has been assured that the complex can be built without harming the environment as long as certain provisions for the mice are made. The plans have now been submitted to Fareham Borough Council to consider and a decision due by early next year, and if approved the club hopes to have the development ready by the 2008 season. Talking to The News Portsmouth chief executive Peter Storrie said "The application has been a long, long wait which has taken hundreds and hundreds of different requirements which unfortunately we have to do nowadays. "They have gone on forever; it's part of the application process in the UK I am afraid. We've had to do all sorts of reports on all kinds of things. They take up many, many binders." "A lot of things came out of the studies and the report of dormice was one of the items. The only place that would be an issue is at the front entrance but we will find a corrective safe passage for them" RSS Subscribe |  Del.icio.us | Digg It |  Reddit |  Technorati Posted Oct 14 2007, 04:00 PM by JenniP with no comments Filed under: Portsmouth, Training Ground

• Redknapp : We’ve neglected our youth policy but that’s all changed

  Pompey manager Harry Redknapp has said there will be a focus on the youth team and expect Pompey to sign Paul Hart to continue the good work he has done so far spotting good young talent. This follows Pompey last week paying a rumoured £400,000 for Millwall starlet Tom Kilbey and the trio of Rushden and Diamond players signed in the summer, and recent admissions by Tony Adams that Pompey are looking at Southampton right winger Nathan Dyer. Chairman Sasha Gaydamak is looking to this investment in the youth team to bring new players into the Pompey first team, and to give the newly founded Pompey Academy a good start. Talking to The News Harry Redknapp said "Tom Kilbey is a young player who Paul Hart rates highly. He is a tall lad with a good physique. "Paul likes him so we are giving him some backing. He has come in and got on with setting up the Academy. "We will back Paul Hart's judgement – and he says he is a good player. "The youth system is something that has been neglected here over a number of years. Mr Gaydamak wants to see young players coming through. "Nowadays, players often come from other clubs and are brought into other setups. "Southampton did it with a lot of players. Theo Walcott came from Swindon, David McGoldrick and Leon Best came from Notts County. "Then there was Dexter Blackstock from Oxford. Paul knows about the young players in the game and is a big asset to us." With our story yesterday about Kanu being the key to unlock the pool of African young talent perhaps we will see some of those coming to our Academy soon (Full Story) RSS Subscribe |  Del.icio.us | Digg It |  Reddit |  Technorati Posted Oct 14 2007, 01:06 PM by JenniP with 2 comment(s) Filed under: Portsmouth, Harry Redknapp, Academy, Tom Kilbey, Paul Hart

• Kanu can help Pompey net young stars

  With Harry Redknapp in the last few days proclaiming that there is a vast mostly untapped source of good young players in Africa, Kanu's agent feels that the widely respected striker is the man to help Pompey tap the talent in teams such as the under 17's World Cup winning Nigerian side who are bound to be in demand after sweeping aside Colombia, Argentina , Germany and finally defeating Spain in the final. With Pompey already bring several high profile young players to Fratton Park and with Gaydamak wanting to get the new Pompey Academy off to a good start these could be ideal times for Kanu to use some of his influence to help Pompey land some of these promising starlets. However these flying Super Eagles are already bring tracked by other clubs, Spurs are said to be interested in Macauley Christanus who finished top scorer in the under 17's World Cup. Talking to The News Samuel Okoronkwo said "I have spoken before about what he can do for Portsmouth because of his influence in Africa. "There is plenty of talent there. We have seen that with Nigeria winning the junior World Cup. "They have all been on the phone speaking to Kanu since they won the competition. There is every chance some of these players will end up playing in England. "But at the moment I think it is teams like Manchester United and Liverpool who are interested in them. "These are outstanding players. It shows you the kind of influence Kanu can have for Portsmouth" RSS Subscribe |  Del.icio.us | Digg It |  Reddit |  Technorati Posted Oct 13 2007, 11:16 PM by JenniP with 1 comment(s) Filed under: Portsmouth, Kanu, Academy

• Redknapp blames modern culture for lack of English talent

  Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp thinks the current lack of good talented English youth players is not due to clubs not giving English players a go prefering to import them from abroard but the talent just isnt there.  He blames modern culture where kids stay in playing games consoles and not outside playing football like kids of previous generations.  "I'm fed up with managers being made scapegoats for the state of our domestic game," he said in his column for The Sun. "The English working class is turning its back on football - and that is not my fault. "I do have a lot of foreign players at Portsmouth but believe me I'd love nothing more than to field a team of 11 so-called 'home-grown' lads born within the city limits. "But it has become harder and harder to find enough kids of the kind of quality required to make the grade without buying an air ticket." Redknapp added: "It may sound old and corny but when I was growing up, working class lads like me in the east end lived and breathed football. "Now I rarely see a kickabout in the park. All I see are the dazzling lights of bedroom windows from the glare of TVs and computers. It seems football cannot compete with an X-Box." RSS Subscribe |  Del.icio.us | Digg It |  Reddit |  Technorati Posted Oct 11 2007, 08:38 AM by JenniP with 1 comment(s) Filed under: Portsmouth, Harry Redknapp, England

• Kallon fails to impress Redknapp

  The former Monaco forward Mohamed Kallon has left Fratton Park after being on trial for the last week. The out of contract 28 year old appeared in the 2-2 reserve team against Aston Villa along side David Nugent and did well. Steve Bruce had already taken a look at him at Birmingham but decided against a deal but after concerns over a work permit Kallon was not offered a deal. Even though Harry has been reported as wanting another striker he felt that there was not enough difference between what he already had to make an offer. Talking to The News Harry Redknapp said "We were just having a look at him. He's out of contract so it was worth a go. "He trained with us all week and played a reserve game and he did all right. But we're not going to take it any further. "He's a good player, but we've got Benji, Kanu and Nugent at the moment and they're all doing well and scoring goals for us. "For someone to come in he's got to be better than them, he's got to improve us or give us something different. "So we wont be following that one up and he's gone. I'm pleased with the strikers we've got already." RSS Subscribe |  Del.icio.us | Digg It |  Reddit |  Technorati Posted Oct 10 2007, 06:11 PM by JenniP with no comments Filed under: Portsmouth, Trialist

• Linvoy’s injury woes continue

  Pompey defender Linvoy Primus has suffered another setback in recovering from his knee injury and has today travelled to London to see a specialist. Primus who has been expected to return to first team action in recent weeks after surgery in the summer to fix his knee problem. However this setback will cause him to see further medical advice before returning. In common with most Pompey fans Redknapp wants Linvoy back in the squad. Head physio Gary Sadler told The News: "It's a real setback, Linvoy was doing so well. "While he is playing there is no discomfort, that's not the problem - it's just afterwards that he's been feeling it. "He explains it as feeling edgy and not normal and says he cannot get any power in his left leg. "It's actually a different area of the knee so it's not the old problem, fortunately that seems to have been corrected. "It would actually have been more of a setback if the old injury had recurred." Fratton Park boss Redknapp added: "Linvoy has a problem at the moment with his knee, it still doesn't feel right and is nowhere near. "He's struggling to play and has gone to see another specialist to get a look at it. "We just want him back playing again."   RSS Subscribe |  Del.icio.us | Digg It |  Reddit |  Technorati Posted Oct 10 2007, 01:57 PM by JenniP with 1 comment(s) Filed under: Injuries, Linvoy Primus, Portsmouth

• Benjani sets goal target

  Benjani has astounded Pompey fans this with his recent goal tally of six goals in six starts this season, now he will surprise Pompey fans even more stating he wants to score over 15 goals this season. The Zimbabwean striker netted again against Fulham yesterday, and is currently joint top of the Premier League goal scoring charts with Arsenal Emmanuel Adebayor, and has already scored in six games the same number of goals as his entire tally last season. Talking to The News Benjani said "My target is between 10 and 15 goals. But anything else above 15 will be a bonus for me and the manager. "All of the strikers need to score goals to help the club do well and I am heading to that "If I keep scoring, I have the confidence back and I am a confidence player. I'm very happy. "If you are a striker sometimes if you hit the ball hard enough and you are lucky it goes into the net and that's what happened yesterday even though it took a deflection. "I now have six but I don't play attention to the goal charts. As long as the team wins I know I will follow the leaders. "The quality in the team now is different. Everyone is willing to play and willing to work hard so it's much easier for us up front "Now we can play the ball around and it helps me score. I now want to keep doing that" RSS Subscribe |  Del.icio.us | Digg It |  Reddit |  Technorati Posted Oct 08 2007, 08:00 PM by JenniP with no comments Filed under: Portsmouth, Benjani

• Redknapp praises goal hero Benjani

  Pompey boss Harry Redknapp praised opening goal scorer Benjani after todays 2-0 win at Fulham.  Redknapp said: "Benji is a very good player, always has been. The season we made a great escape from relegation he was superb with his work rate and the fans idolised him even though he scored only a very few goals. "Kanu has done really well for us, too, but he's going to have to try and get his place back now after injury. "We're on a good little run and it's been a fantastic start to the season. We have just got to keep going. RSS Subscribe |  Del.icio.us | Digg It |  Reddit |  Technorati Posted Oct 07 2007, 10:47 PM by JenniP with no comments Filed under: Portsmouth, Benjani, Kanu

• Defender set to join QPR on loan

  As expected Pompey defender Martin Cranie is set to join Queens Park Rangers on loan before their game against Norwich on Monday, in what seems to be a 3 month deal to gain first team experence after the former Southampton defender dropped down the pecking order after the purchase of Glen Johnson. Harry Redknapp is thought to favour sending out the defender to give them more first team experience as so far he has only made 3 appearances for Pompey and with Linvoy Primus almost ready to return to first team action letting Cranie go on loan wouldn't affect the team. QPR who are currently bottom of the Championship have recently loaned former Pompey striker Rowan Vine from Birmingham and midfielder Jason Jarrett from Preston to help QPR haul themselves up the table after their poor start cost former manager John Gregory his job. RSS Subscribe |  Del.icio.us | Digg It |  Reddit |  Technorati Posted Oct 06 2007, 07:04 PM by JenniP with no comments Filed under: Portsmouth, Martin Cranie

• I can’t leave Benjani out – Redknapp

  Benjani has sealed a starting place, at least for the Fulham game. The Zimbabwean only featured as Kanu was not fit to play and speculation had been mounting that the hattrick hero Benjani may be dropped if Kanu was fit, however Pompey boss Harry Redknapp says Benji is firmly in his first team plans still. "How can I leave him out after a performance like that?" asked Redknapp. "He had a tight hamstring himself all week but when we found Kanu wouldn't be ready, Benjani was the one who replaced him as the central striker and he was excellent. "Let's be honest, Benjani has always been excellent here in whatever position. It was a surprise he scored three goals because he has never been a great goalscorer for us, but he makes chances for others and always works his socks off. The fans idolise him. "I've always had a lot of time for Benjani, he's a real team player and it was great to see him getting some personal glory. And everybody knows how much I think of Kanu. To be fair, he's the one we have relied on whenever we've played just one up front. "The way he can hold the ball up and bring other people into play is probably second to none. "But his knee is still giving him problems. He's had some injections in it and trained a little but I'm not optimistic he will be fit for Sunday. Benjani will definitely play." RSS Subscribe |  Del.icio.us | Digg It |  Reddit |  Technorati Posted Oct 05 2007, 09:43 PM by JenniP with 2 comment(s)

• QPR looking for Cranie loan

  Caretaker Queens Park Rangers boss Mick Harford is being reported as sounding out Pompey as to Cranie's availability to a loan deal. The former Southampton defender joined Pompey during the summer however the purchase of Glen Johnson has pushed Cranie down the pecking order. Harry Redknapp is thought to favour sending out the defender to give them more first team experience and with Linvoy Primus almost ready to return to first team action letting Cranie go on loan wouldn't affect the team. QPR have recently loaned former Pompey striker Rowan Vine from Birmingham and midfielder Jason Jarrett from Preston to help QPR haul themselves up the table after their poor start cost former manager John Gregory his job. RSS Subscribe |  Del.icio.us | Digg It |  Reddit |  Technorati Posted Oct 05 2007, 02:08 PM by JenniP with no comments

• Pompey buy for the future

  Pompey continue to improve their youth team by signing Millwall starlet Tom Kibley. The 16 year old midfielder had recently made his senior debut in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy last month against Swansea when he came on in the 42rd minute in the 3-2 defeat. Millwall manager Willie Donachie had reciently warned off potential suitors however it seems an acceptable offer had been made. RSS Subscribe |  Del.icio.us | Digg It |  Reddit |  Technorati Posted Oct 05 2007, 01:32 PM by JenniP with no comments

• Campbell eyes euro place

  Portsmouth captain Sol Campbell feels that Pompey should achieve a European place this season, and that failing to do so last season was underachievement. Pompey missed out on the UFEA cup by 2 points, with many fans pointing to the dodgy refereeing decisions made in our last home game against Arsenal costing us a European place. While we could have played in the Intertoto cup to earn a European place our pre-season tour in Hong Kong was already arranged. Talking to The Mirror Campbell said "We underachieved last season. We had a fantastic opportunity to qualify for Europe and we didn't take it. We should easily have qualified and I was disappointed we failed. "Hopefully we can make the step up this season. We've made some great signings who I feel can get us to where we want to be." RSS Subscribe |  Del.icio.us | Digg It |  Reddit |  Technorati Posted Oct 02 2007, 11:59 AM by JenniP with no comments