Portsmouth striker target Nesta Elphege misses latest league match as potential replacement makes debut
Pompey remain keen on Grenoble striker Nesta Elphege during the January transfer window
Pompey target Nesta Elphege played no part in Grenoble’s Ligue 2 defeat against Red Star on Saturday.
The striker, who is on the Blues’ transfer radar this month, reportedly sat out the game at the Stade des Alpes because of an injury.
It’s the second match in a row that the £1m-rated front man has missed for Franck Rizzetto’s side, although there’s no specific information about the nature of the issue he’s suffering from.
Grenoble lost the game 3-0 - their third defeat in a row - as Elphege’s absence was felt by the 13th-placed outft. Indeed, in his post-match comments, Rizzetto said he was ‘ashamed’ by what he witnessed from his side as he claimed Red Star ‘showed much more intelligence, more guile, more precision, more power, more technique’ throughout the 90 minutes.
The manager’s brutal analysis of his team’s performance might not include that of second-half substitute Arthur Lallias, however.
The 22-year-old striker was making his first appearance for Grenoble following his move from US Orleans during the week and came on after 74 minutes.
His arrival at GF38 has led some media outlets in France to speculate his transfer could pave the way for Elphege to depart the club this month amid interest from Pompey and clubs in Germany.
The News understands the Blues see the 25-year-old front man as a realistic target during the transfer window, with the Paris-born striker having the physicality and ability to step up to Championship football and play a role in Pompey’s survival bid.
John Mousinho’s side boosted their hopes of remaining in the second tier with a 1-0 win at rock-bottom Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough.
Top-scorer Adrian Segecic scored the decisive goal against the Owls in the 65th minute to take his tally for the season to five. However, Pompey’s struggles in front of goal were evident, with Colby Bishop unble to build on his goal against Arsenal in the FA Cup and remaining on one league goal for the season. Attcking midfielder Conor Chaplin also took his number of Pompey loan appearances to 21 without finding the back of the net.
The striker position remains an area the Blues want to strengthen ahead of the February 2 transfer deadline.
Pompey boosted their squad with the arrivals of Millenic Alli and Ebou Adams in the build-up to Saturday’s game at Hillsborough.