‘Available to start’: Portsmouth handed massive selection boost ahead of Burnley and Sheffield United.
Regan Poole has been given the green light for a full Pompey return at Burnley.
The Blues defender has handed his side a massive fillip ahead of the trip to Burnley, after being deemed ‘available to start’ at Turf Moor this weekend.
Poole came through a behind-closed-doors friendly win over Hawks on Tuesday, as he played 45 minutes at his club’s Hilsea base.
Now John Mousinho has confirmed the 26-year-old can be used from the outset against Scott Parker’s side, as he weighs up his level of involvement against the fancied contenders.
Poole played the final 14 minutes of Sunday’s 3-0 defeat to West Brom, after 10 months out with an anterior cruciate ligament injury picked up at Chesterfield last November.
Pompey also welcomed Tom McIntyre back into the fold with his first start since breaking his ankle in February, but Conor Shaughnessy missed the Baggies loss and is rated doubtful for his weekend.
Mousinho wouldn’t be drawn on the extent of Poole’s involvement, as his side go search of their first win of the season in Lancashire.
But after erring on the side of caution with the centre-half, who made a huge impact across 17 games last term, he is ready to complete the final steps of his return.
Mousinho said: ‘We’re really pleased that Regan’s there now.
‘It’s taken a long time and been a long road to recovery, he’s going to be a really important part of everything we do this year.
‘There is (caution), if you look at him being available for last weekend but now available to start. That’s showing caution and then he got 45 minutes yesterday (against Hawks) to build himself up.
‘They are really positive signs, but we do have to show caution with him.
‘It’s pushing six weeks by the time we get to the Burnley game, and that’s about right for someone coming off the back of a nine-month injury.
‘The first couple of weeks he was back in training he was never a consideration. Then we’ve been pushing to have him in squads, have him available and now pushing to have him available to start.’