Source: Team_Talk
Grant can't commit to Portsmouth
Pompey became the first club in Premier League history to go into administration on Friday.[LNB]Grant masterminded a resilient victory at Turf Moor as his players at least proved they are not about to roll over and die in spite of the crisis they find themselves in off the pitch.[LNB]The win, only their second away from home in the league in the last 16 months, means at the moment rock-bottom Pompey are five points adrift of safety.[LNB]In reality, however, they are 14 behind as the Premier League board have yet to meet to confirm the nine-point deduction that comes with administration.[LNB]As for Grant's fate, and that of his players, he admits he has no idea as he cannot be certain of what the administrator will decide to do in terms of cost cuts over the next few weeks.[LNB]"I cannot promise anything, other than as long as I am here then I will fight for the city and the club because it's the right thing to do," insisted Grant.[LNB]"But I'm not thinking about myself right now. If I think I need to walk away, then I will do it.[LNB]"But if I was going to walk away I would have done it in January when everything that should have happened didn't and then things became even worse.[LNB]"So I will try to help this club and ty as much as I can because when you're in football you need to think about making other people happy.[LNB]"I'm talking about the fans who are so wonderful, the city which is behind us, and the players and staff."[LNB]Asked about his own salary and whether he was still being paid, he replied: "To be honest, I don't know," although he refused to state if he was working for free.[LNB]Grant, though, is adamant he has no regrets about having taken on the job, in many respects a poisoned chalice he was handed at the end of November.[LNB]He has, however, pointed an accusing finger at those who have the run the club, claiming he was lied to.[LNB]"I'm very proud to be part of the football side of the club," said Grant.[LNB]"But I'm very disappointed and very sad about what has happened on the other side because it is not football.[LNB]"I'm a football manager and I want to deal with football problems, I don't want to deal with other problems.[LNB]"Of course I could never have predicted what has happened, not even in my dreams.[LNB]"I thought we had a position on the pitch we could handle, that we could do something.[LNB]"But then I started to doubt the situation when 100% of the things I was promised didn't come, and then it became worse and worse and then administration.[LNB]"Now I don't know what will happen tomorrow, never mind next season."[LNB]The result at least raised a smile, with Hassan Yebda scoring the 75th-minute winner from the spot after Martin Paterson had cancelled out Frederic Piquionne's opener in the first half.[LNB]Jamie O'Hara even had a 55th-minute penalty saved, with both of the spot-kicks given away by Clarets captain Clarke Carlisle.[LNB]The visitors also ended the game with 10 men when Ricardo Rocha was dismissed for two bookable offences in injury time.[LNB]"It was a good performance under the circumstances," said Grant.[LNB]"Today it was important because of what has happened in the last week, to show football is stronger than everything.[LNB]"Thank God we won the game, even after missing a penalty."[LNB]Burnley remain directly above Portsmouth, and after a run of one win in their last 16 league matches, relegation is fast becoming a possibility.[LNB]"I felt we deserved something out of it, but inexplicably you can't give away opportunities and goals like we did," said manager Brian Laws.[LNB]"We needed to make it difficult for them, so to hand it over on a plate is a bit difficult to swallow to say the least."[LNB][LNB]
