During that period alongside John Mousinho, he has overseen the Blues capturing the League One title and now enjoying successive seasons in the Championship, currently in 14th spot.
With the Hughes era beginning in October 2022, we’ve taken a look at 16 loan recruits since then – rating each of them.
NOTE: These do not include Pompey’s 43 permanent signings since then during that time, which can be viewed here.
5. Tino Anjorin - MISS
(14 games, 2 goals) Showed glimpses of the ability which saw Pompey target him for a season-long loan from Chelsea, but not enough unfortunately. Obviously injury was a key factor, having been sidelined for five months by the hamstring injury collected at Chesterfield. Yet considering his reputation, he did little to justify them and, by the time he returned from injury in April, Mousinho's men already had the finishing line within reach. Photo: Alex Davidson
6. Myles Peart-Harris - MISS
(12 games, 2 goals) A wonderful debut at Port Vale in January 2024 perhaps set the bar too high - nonetheless, he never again got anywhere near it. Overall, the Brentford man was frustrating and a disappointment, while was even left out of the squad towards the end of the season. He returned for the final two games and scored at Lincoln - but Pompey were already promoted by then. Photo: Jason Brown
7. Freddie Potts - HIT
(38 games, 1 goal) Began life at Fratton Park on loan from West Ham as an unused substitute in successive matches, but then established himself as a regular in the centre midfield as Potts became one of Pompey's star performers. The youngster had never featured in the Championship before, but was a revelation with his controlled performances and array of passing, flourishing with regular games. Norwich away was a particular stand-out showing. Photo: David Rogers
8. Mark O'Mahony - MISS
(13 games, 3 goals) Started off encouragingly enough following his arrival on a season-long loan from Brighton, with two goals in his opening three Championship starts. However, injury, coupled with Colby Bishop's surprisingly-early return, mean we barely saw him after November. The Irishman didn't even feature in the final five matches, not named in the squad for three of those. Based on his initial impact - a big disappointment. Photo: Jason Brown