West Ham v Portsmouth match thread, Saturday 8th August, 15:00
So here we go after the long barren summer, back to real football involving the mighty Irons.
So it's the league cup 1st round.
And it's liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiive on sky
COYI
So it's the league cup 1st round.
And it's liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiive on sky
COYI
Comments
Hermansen
Walker-Peters - Mavropanos - Kilman - Scarles
Bowen - Kanté - Ward-Prowse - Cornet
Pablo
Taty
They were owned by a dodgy Russian oligarch who was arrested for fraud, skipped bail before he could be extradited to Lithuania and went back to Russia - where he was arrested, convicted for fraud and sent down for 6 years
The club went into administration, got relegated two seasons in a row, went through 5 managers in two seasons, had their entire first team squad quit and almost got relegated to the Conference before climbing back up
Current manager John Mousinho was recruited in January 2023, they won League One in his first full season in charge and has kept them up, just, finishing 16th and 18th. Not bad considering his previous experience was a season and a half as a player coach at Oxford United
Last season they weren't particularly bad or good at anything, fairly middling as far as stats go. They play fairly simple tactics; long balls, crosses into the box, good at set pieces and defending in the air.
They're best players are their wingers but one of them won't be around for a while.
Player of the Season 24/25 LW Josh Murphy spent a lot of time injured and is currently recovering my surgery but still managed to be joint assist provider with 6 in 16 appearances. They're looking for a loan replacement from the Premier League but so far haven't managed to land anyone
The other top assist provider was Australian U23 RW Adrian Segecic who was also top scorer (10 including a hat trick against Stoke)
They've signed 6’5” Serbian CF Marko Milovanović (UD Almeria £4.25M), spent last season on loan with Alverca in the Portuguese top flight scoring 10 in 32. Last season's first choice CF Colby Bishop only scored 4 goals in 43 appearances
Other new arrivals include the magnificently named midfielder Odin Bailey (Stockport free) who must have had a tough time at school with that name in Birmingham
Pompey’s current owner is Michael Eisner, ex-CEO of Walt Disney
Let the Mickey Mouse jokes flow
And they have signed a 6' 5" centre forward
Obviously the manager is a Niallist...
6'5" Marko Quinnović has only played 30 minutes in a friendly against Kuwait SC yesterday, Mousinho told the local "News" he'll get "15 minutes on Saturday, 30 minutes against QPR and 45 minutes after that"
Colby Bishop has started in recent friendlies and he's also club captain so likely to start on Saturday
Pompey are hoping to loan Hull's 23yo winger Abu Kamara
It will be his second loan at Fratton Park, he was there when they won League One 2023/24, scored 10 in 52 and was voted Pompey's young player of the season. Spent last season on loan at Getafe but only got 13 appearances
coat please
LB Connor Ogilvie and CM Marlon Pack were both first choice starters last season but will be unavailable.
They normally play 4-2-3-1 and the other first choice CM Andre Dozzell joined DC United
So the two centre midfielders will be last season's back ups or new arrivals
Subs: Areola (GK), Veltman, Diouf, Mayers, Casey, Golambeckis, Ward-Prowse, Earthy, Ajala
Looking over Pompey's starting line up GK Nicolas Schmid, RB Terry Devlin (Player of the Season), CBs Regan Poole and Conor Shaughnessy, RW Adrian Segecic and CF Colby Bishop were all regular starters last season
LB Zac Swanson was 2nd choice RB/LB, CMs Luke Le Roux and Ebou Adams (30 caps for Gambia) were squad players
AM Rocco Shien and LW Luke Brooke-Smith (Kiwi 18yo, £0.4m Wellington Phoenix, scored against Egypt in World Cup) are new arrivals
Schmid was called up to the Austrian squad in May 2025 but hasn't been capped yet
Schmid
Devlin Poole Shaughnessy Swanson
Le Roux Adams
Segecic Shien Brooke-Smith
Bishop
Right, I'm off to the Crown on Leytonstone High Road
5-0 with a Bowen hat trick