Portsmouth vs Coventry Preview

22 March 2013 19:14
Two potless teams meet at Fratton Park.

Coventry City visit Fratton Park tomorrow in a battle between two clubs in financial difficulty.

Team News

Guy Whittingham has hinted that he may make changes to his side as some players may be getting tired or complacent having started the last four games in a row.

Coventry manager Steven Pressley will be without goalscoring midfielder Carl Baker whilst Leon Clarke, who scored against Pompey at Fratton Park for Scunthorpe earlier in the season, is out for the rest of the campaign.

The Match

Prior to this game the Portsmouth and Coventry supporters trusts will meet in a show of unity between two sets of fans who have been taken for a ride by the likes of Portpin and SISU, the motley crew currently ruining the Sky Blues.

Pompey's off-field issues are well documented but Cov have plenty of problems off the pitch, too.

A court case to decide if the club can still play at the Ricoh Arena has been adjourned until next Thursday whilst the owners are attempting to "do a Southampton" by placing a "non-operating subsidary" of the club into administration in the hopes of avoiding a points deduction.

Whatever happens, Sky Blues fans are sure to have some sympathy from the Pompey supporters who have been through it all before. That is up until kick off, of course, with Pompey aiming for a win to take them off the bottom of the table.

Bury's 2-0 win over Stevenage saw Portsmouth return to the bottom of the league but a win at Fratton Park tomorrow coupled with Bury (away to Bournemouth) or Hartlepool (home to Walsall) failing to win will see Pompey off the bottom once again.

However, Coventry are aiming for promotion and are only three points behind the play-off places and will be desperate for the win themselves with a possible points deduction looming.

Pompey will be boosted by the fact that captain Carl Baker and Leon Clarke will be absent. The pair have scored 35 goals between them this season and Coventry are likely to struggle to score without them.

This is likely to be a scrappy game with Coventry looking to keep things tight at the back and in midfield but a rejuvenated Pompey team might fancy their chances given the problems surrounding the midlands club right now.

Predicted Starting Line-Ups

Pompey

GK: Simon EASTWOOD

RB: Yassin MOUTAOUAKIL

CB: Ricardo ROCHA

CB: Gabor GYEPES

LB: Dan BUTLER

RM: Liam WALKER

CM: Therry RACON

CM: Johnny ERTL

LM: Jed WALLACE

CF: Patrick AGYEMANG

CF: David CONNOLLY

Coventry

GK: Joe MURPHY

RB: Cyrus CHRISTIE

CB: William EDJENGUELE

CB: Aaron MARTIN

LB: Jordan STEWART

RM: Franck MOUSSA

CM: Steve JENNINGS

CM: James BAILEY

LM: Gary McSHEFFREY

AM: John FLECK

CF: Cody MacDONALD

Last Time: Portsmouth 2 Coventry City 1 (Championship - 03/12/2011)

Greg Halford gave Pompey the lead with a penalty after some terrible Coventry defending but the Sky Blues equalised when Lukasz Jutkiewicz tapped in Richard Woods's cross.

A quick George Thorne free kick allowed Joel Ward to score what ended up to be the winning goal which gave Michael Appleton his first win in management. It has been downhill for him, Portsmouth and Coventry ever since.

My Prediction

This game may have come at the right time for us with both of Coventry's key players missing and all the turmoil happening off the pitch. Pompey have played well enough to suggest they might get a result.

Portsmouth 2 Coventry City 1

Source: Fratton Faithful

Source: FOOTYMAD