Portsmouth Football Club News

• Nickname:Pompey
• Founded:1898
• Manager:Michael Appleton

• Ground:Fratton Park
• Capacity:19,179

Short deals concern Hughes

09 Mar 2009 - 12:40:21

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Portsmouth midfielder Richard Hughes believes the fact that so many of his team-mates are out of contract in the summer has contributed to the club's poor season.

Last term Pompey won the FA Cup and finished eighth in the Premier League but this season find themselves battling to avoid relegation.

Hughes, who is under contract at Fratton Park until June 2011, is only too aware that 18 members of the first-team squad do not know if they will still be with the club next season.

He said: "Anyone that says the contract situation doesn't play on your mind is lying.

"You wonder where you are going to live next year. You're thinking about the possibility of buying property and putting down those roots.

"If you've got children - my girlfriend's got a daughter - you're wondering what you should do about her schooling arrangements.

"That does have an impact on your day-to-day life, I don't think you can argue with that.

"In football you realise it's a short career and these things happen. But with one-year or two-year contracts you can't plan too much for the future.

"Whether it would drag you down and worry you to a certain extent is entirely down to the individual. But naturally you think about it."