Portsmouth owners warned if 'Championship-quality' signings not made during January transfer window
Pompey have been told relegation is a real danger if they don’t invest in Championship quality player this month
Pompey have been warned relegation is a serious consequence if they don’t invest in Championship-quality players during the current January transfer window.
That’s the verdict of The News’ Jordan Cross, who believes John Mousinho and Rich Hughes must to be given the proper tools to keep the Blues in the second tier beyond this season.
And if they aren’t, then the blame - according to Cross - will lie solely at the feet of owners Tornante, who have been in control at Fratton Park since 2017.
Pompey’s January transfer window to date
Ten days have now passed since the January transfer window opened. And despite the first-team ranks being decimated by injuries in recent weeks and the Blues sitting just one point and one place above the relegation zone, Pompey fans are still waiting for the first signing that they hope will help the club avoid a return to League One.
Instead, Minhyeok’s return to parent club Spurs has been the only bit of business completed by the Fratton Park club to date. Meanwhile, the calibre of player currently being linked with a move to PO4 appear out of Pompey’s reach financially.
Reported target Ousmane Sow is a good example of that, with the forward completing a €2.5m, plus bonuses, move to Danish Superliga side Brøndby on Friday. Following the completion of that move, Sow said Steve Cooper’s side matched his ambitions and that they were the ‘best choice’ he had received following nine goal contributions for Gornik Zabrize this season.
Pompey relegation a genuine fear
That bit of business and Mousinho’s admission that rivals are spending more on a single player this season than his entire budget, has caused frustration.
That was manifested in The News’ latest episode of Pompey Talk, with Cross feeling the need to warn the club of pitfalls that could potentially lie in wait if Championship-quality players are not recruited between now and February 2.
He said: ‘I just want to make it clear that... if Pompey don't invest significantly in Championship-quality players in the January window they will get relegated. (And), if they don't invest to the level required to do that, the blame will lie with the Eisners on that.
‘That's the context to which this transfer window is taking place. You have to wait to make judgment on that... (and) I think the time to make judgment that will come on the evening of February 2 after the window's closed.
‘But that is the landscape to which we are working in. ‘
When asked why he felt the need to speak out now, Cross added: ‘I just think that it's clear that the market has changed.
‘The Eisners have spent (money) to get Pompey into the Championship, and to a degree, but the status quo where Pompey are in the Championship hierarchy in terms of playing budget and transfer budget is clear - it's down at the bottom, and it's clear that if you don't move on from that, at some point then it's going to be tough for Pompey to then compete at Championship level.
‘John Mousinho and Rich Hughes did fantastically well this time last year and this is a real cause for optimism.
‘But to continue to do that when the club is at the position they are in terms of hierarchy is a big, big ask. They need to be given the tools to do that.’
With the players currently linked with a move to Fratton Park being loans or players from abroad, Cross added: ‘I personally don't care where the players come from.
‘Loans - fine; if it's from the European market - also fine, because you can go and do that. Pompey have done it in the past, they've got players who can come in and affect things now from the European market - even 20-odd years ago, with Yakubu being one great example.
‘Loans, much more recently we look at Rob Atkinson and Isaac Hayden to a degree. These are players who came in and made a difference in January. But it's all about Championship quality, and that's the thing that's needed now.
‘There’s been lot of noise about the players (Pompey have been linked with)... and then the players that have been spoken about, Pompey being priced out for (them), and that probably cuts to a part of why I'm making that statement as well.
‘If we miss out on these players that are going to make a difference, then the outcome is going to be a negative one. ‘