Out-of-favour Portsmouth man in race against time to complete Fratton Park exit as interest grows

Jacob Farrell is facing a race against time to complete his return to Australia.

The out-of-favour Pompey defender is believed to have interest from the A-League, with the Aussie transfer window set to come to a close this evening at 11.59pm (AEST). That would nine hours ahead of BST.

Aussie transfer guru James Dodd has claimed the 23-year-old is a late target for Sydney FC, who are believed to be attempting to secure a deadline day capture.

Late-window interest growing in Pompey man

It remains to be seen whether Farrell’s Fratton Park exit would be on a temporary or permanent basis, with John Mousinho’s men willing to sanction any form of departure.

The left-back has suffered an injury-ravaged two-year stay with the Blues, which has restricted him to just three appearances in all competitions.

A problematic groin issue would frustrate the former Socceroos youth international’s loan stay with Western Sydney Wanderers during the second half of last term, with a recurrence of the issue also sidelining him throughout pre-season.

Now back to full fitness, Pompey are looking to offload Farrell, who faces a race against time to return to the A-League with Sydney FC.

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Pompey seeking to offload out-of-favour left-back

The 2024 arrival was recently left out of the Blues’ 25-man EFL squad along with Harvey Blair and the injured Mark Kosznovszky, Connor Ogilvie, Keshi Anderson and Josh Murphy.

Mousinho revealed the defender was close to a return to training, which would subsequently allow him to complete an exit, with his future now lying away from Fratton Park.

The head coach told The News last week: ‘Jacob's still with us, he’s just at the end stage of rehab and is actually doing pretty well and is very close to training.

‘We’re still looking to loan him out, that will probably be the plan with Faz. We’ve got a couple of options, but I’ve not been completely on top of that, so I’ll see where it is.’

Earlier this summer, Mousinho admitted the Blues were prepared to let Farrell leave on either a loan or permanent deal after becoming frustrated with his lack of availability.

Since joining from Central Coast Mariners in July 2024, the former Australia Under-23 international has suffered persistent knee and groin problems, restricting him to just seven first-team squads.

Farrell still has two years remaining on his four-year Fratton Park deal.

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