Portsmouth's impressive Championship placing since Colby Bishop's return compared to Leeds, Sunderland & Co
Colby Bishop has been instrumental to Pompey’s rise up the Championship table.
It’s been a frenetic start to life back in the second tier for the Blues after a 12-year absence. It was a difficult start to the campaign, too, with John Mousinho’s men at one point sat at the foot of the table having collected just nine points from their opening 14 games.
At the time, the Blues were also reeling from Bishop’s absence, with the 28-year-old missing the opening three months of the campaign after undergoing heart surgery in August.
Despite an underwhelming start to the new term, the Blues’ campaign appeared to kick into gear on November 9 following an outstanding 3-1 triumph over Preston North End at Fratton Park.
Although Mousinho’s men recorded their first win on home soil back in the Championship that day, the afternoon’s main headline saw Bishop named in the matchday squad before he came off the bench to score on his comeback appearance.
Since that victory against the Lilywhites, Fratton Park has once again became a place to be feared, with Pompey going unbeaten in 10 of their next 11 Championship outings at home.
While their form at Fratton Park is something to be desired, Bishop has been influential in the Blues’ attacking alongside Josh Murphy, Matt Ritchie and Callum Lang. Indeed, that forward power has helped Pompey make a significant rise up the Championship table.
Following Saturday’s 2-1 victory against QPR, the Blues now sit nine points above the relegation zone in 17th place.
Confidence continues to grow off the pitch, too, with Pompey announcing on Monday evening that Bishop had penned a new three-and-a-half-year deal to remain on the south coast. News of the Magic Man remaining at PO4 until 2028, saw the Fratton faithful register their delight on social media as Pompey look to remain in the Championship next term.
With a number of fans pinpointing Bishop’s return as key to the Blues’ change in form, we thought it would be interesting to see where Mousinho’s men would sit in the table if the campaign got under way on November 9. Here’s what we discovered...
League table if season had started on November 9
1 Leeds United - points 46
P: 19 W:14; D:4; L:1.
2 Burnley - points 41
P: W:11; D:8; L:0.
3 Sheffield United - points 37
P: 19; W:12; D:3; L:4.
4 Coventry - points 34
P: W:10; D:4; L:5.
5 QPR - points 34
P:19; W:10; D:4; L:5.
6 Sunderland - points 31
P:19; W:8; D:7; L:4;
7 Blackburn - points 29
P:19; W:9 D:2 L:8
8 Norwich - points 29
P:19; W:8; D:5; L:6.
9 Bristol City - points 27
P: W:7; D:6; L:6.
10 Pompey - points 27
P: W:8; D:3; L:8
11 Preston North End - points 27
P: W:6; D:9; L: 4
12 Sheffield Wednesday - points 27
P:19 W:7; D:6; L:6.
13 West Brom - points 26
P:19; W:6; D:8; L:5;
14 Watford - points 23
P:19; W:6; D:5; L:8.
15 Millwall - points 22
P:19; W:5; D:7; L:7.
16 Oxford United - points 21
P:19; W:5; D:6; L:8.
17 - Swansea - points 21
P:19; W:6; D:3; L:10.
18 Middlesbrough - points 20
P:18; W:5; D:5; L:8
19 Cardiff - points 18
P:18; W:3; D:9; L:6.
20 Hull - points 18
P:18; W:5; D:3; L:10.
21 Stoke - points 16
P:18 W:3; D:7; L:8.
22 Plymouth - points 14
P:19; W:2; D:8; L:9.
23 Luton - points 13
P: W:3; D:4; L:12.
24 Derby - points 10
P:19; W:2 D:4; L:13.