Football League World
·10 December 2024
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·10 December 2024
FLW rounds up the latest team news ahead of Portsmouth's game against Norwich City on Tuesday night.
Portsmouth take on Norwich City in the Championship at Fratton Park on Tuesday night.
After a tough start to the season following their promotion from League One that saw them win just one of their first 14 games, it has been a much-improved few weeks for Pompey.
The south coast outfit secured their second victory in three games with an emphatic 3-0 home win over Bristol City on Saturday, with goals from Colby Bishop, Josh Murphy and Callum Lang sealing all three points for John Mousinho's side.
While they remain in the relegation zone, Portsmouth are now 23rd in the table, and they are just one point from safety, while they also have at least one game in hand on many of the teams above them.
After a run of seven games without a win, it looked as though Norwich had turned a corner after comprehensive victories over Plymouth Argyle and Luton Town last month.
However, the Canaries' struggles on the road continued as they were beaten 3-0 by Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road on Saturday, with Jimmy Dunne's strike and a double from Rayan Kolli condemning Johannes Hoff Thorup's men to defeat.
Norwich are currently 10th in the table, but they are now six points from the play-off places, and they will be looking to secure just their third away win of the season when they make the trip to face Pompey.
As the countdown to kick off continues, we rounded up the latest Portsmouth and Norwich team news and looked at which players are set to miss the game on Tuesday night.
Defender Jordan Williams joined Portsmouth from Barnsley this summer, and he had been a regular starter until picking up a hamstring injury just over a month ago.
Williams is progressing well in his recovery, but Mousinho has confirmed he is still a few weeks away from returning to training, so it could be a while until he is available for selection.
Defender Ibane Bowat made the move to Fratton Park from Fulham in the summer, but he has endured a nightmare start to his Pompey career.
Before even making his debut for the club, Bowat suffered a serious knee injury in training that was initially expected to keep him out for six months, but Mousinho later revealed he will likely miss the entire season.
Defender Conor Shaughnessy played a crucial role in Portsmouth's promotion from League One last season, scoring four goals and providing three assists in 49 appearances, but it has been a frustrating campaign for the 28-year-old so far.
Shaughnessy started Pompey's first two games of the season, but he sustained a calf injury in August, and after a number of setbacks in his recovery, he will be out until at least January.
Defender Jacob Farrell joined Portsmouth from Central Coast Mariners in the summer, but he is another player who has been plagued by injury since his arrival at Fratton Park.
Farrell's only appearance for the club so far came in the 0-0 draw at home to Sheffield United in late September, but after over two months on the sidelines, Mousinho is hopeful he will be able to return to training in the coming days.
Midfielder Andre Dozzell has impressed since joining Pompey on a free transfer this summer following his release by QPR, making 13 appearances in all competitions, with 11 of those coming from the start.
However, Dozzell will miss the game against Norwich after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season in the win over Bristol City on Saturday.
Forward Callum Lang is currently Portsmouth's top scorer having netted five goals in 15 appearances so far this season, while he has also registered one assist.
Lang was back on the scoresheet for the first time since mid-October on Saturday, but like Dozzell, he also received his fifth caution of the campaign, meaning he will be out of the game against Norwich as he serves a one-match suspension.
Striker Kusini Yengi scored 13 goals and provided two assists in 31 games last season to help Pompey to the League One title, but injuries have prevented him from showing what he is capable of in the Championship.
Yengi picked up a knee injury while on international duty with Australia last month, and Mousinho revealed last week that he will be sidelined for between nine and 10 weeks.
Forward Mark O'Mahony joined Portsmouth on a season-long loan from Brighton & Hove Albion in the summer, and he has scored two goals in nine appearances for the club so far.
O'Mahony missed the game against Bristol City after being forced off with a muscle injury in the 2-2 draw at Swansea City the previous week, and while he is not expected to be sidelined for long, the 19-year-old has gone for a scan to determine the severity of the problem.
After joining Norwich from Hamilton Academical last summer, midfielder Gabriel Forsyth has made his first-team breakthrough at Carrow Road this season, starting three times in the opening months of the campaign.
However, Forsyth was forced off with a knee injury in the 2-1 defeat at Cardiff City last month, and while he does not require surgery, Thorup revealed he would be out for five or six weeks.
It has been an incredibly frustrating season for Canaries midfielder Liam Gibbs, with injury limiting him to just nine appearances so far.
Gibbs only recently returned from two months on the sidelines, but after suffering a hamstring injury in the 6-1 win over Plymouth last month, he will now likely be out for the next 10 weeks.
Striker Josh Sargent was Norwich's top scorer last season with 16 goals, and his fine form continued into this campaign, with the 24-year-old scoring four goals and registering five assists in his first 12 appearances.