Portsmouth braced for huge Coventry City and Derby County backing in impressive show of support

There’s no time for John Mousinho and his side to dwell on Saturday’s disappointing 2-1 loss to Millwall and quickly turn their attention to the midweek trip to Coventry City.

The disappointment at The Den was watched on 2,000 Blues fans, who made themselves heard throughout the afternoon.

And Pompey’s outstanding backing is set to continue, with hardy members of the Fratton faithful set to make the 280-mile round trip.

It will be the first visit to the CBS Arena in more than six-and-a-half years for Mousinho’s men, who will be accompanied by more than 2,300 supporters in the South Stand.

Pompey’s last away trip to Coventry was played at Birmingham’s St Andrews in February 2020, with the Sky Blues ground-sharing with their West Midlands neighbours amid a stadium dispute with rugby team London Wasps.

The last journey to the CBS Arena came in October 2018, with Ronan Curtis’ first-half effort sealing all three points for Kenny Jackett’s men, who maintained their unbeaten start to the 2018-19 campaign. 1,961 members of the Fratton faithful watched on during the midweek League One contest.

Now in the Championship, a bumper crowd is expected with both sides fighting their own battles at either end of the table.

Frank Lampard’s men are three points outside the play-off positions after successive defeats to Sheffield United and Burnley respectively. Coventry are on an impressive run, though, having won 10 of their previous 14 league games.

Meanwhile, Pompey’s awful away record hasn’t deterred any supporters from booking their tickets for the trip to Coventry on Wednesday. Mousinho’s side have picked up maximum points on just two occasions on the road this term.

The Blues have had an incredible backing in the Championship this term, with 3,624 supporters making the long-trip to Preston in March, while 2,852 fans travelled to Elland Road on the opening day of the season to face Leeds.

Fratton Park close to sell-out for crucial relegation clash against Derby

It’s not just Pompey’s impressive following on the road which has shone so far but their fantastic support at Fratton Park. Indeed, Saturday’s crucial contest against relegation rivals Derby County is the latest to be closing in on a sell-out.

At the time of writing, there is limited availability at PO4 for the pivotal clash, with only single seats accessible on the club’s eticketing site.

Meanwhile, the Rams confirmed on Monday that they had sold out their 2,171 Milton End allocation. John Eustace’s men ended their four-game winning run on the weekend when they fell to a 1-0 defeat to Swansea on Saturday. They face table-topping Burnley at Pride Park this evening.

Two points currently split Pompey and the Rams, with Derby currently sitting 21st in standings, while Mousinho’s troops are four points clear of the bottom three in 17th.

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