New keeper Daniel Bielica was named among the substitutes for Pompey’s friendly defeat at Wycombe on Saturday - but there was no sign of fellow new arrival Marko Milovanovic

Pompey fans might have to wait before they see new striker Marko Milovanovic in action.

The Blues welcomed the multi-million-pound signing to Fratton Park on Thursday, with the 22-year-old Serbia forward penning a four-year deal.

His arrival from UD Almeria ended weeks of speculation and gave John Mousinho’s central attacking ranks a major boost following a 2025-26 campaign that saw that department contribute just five goals in all competitions.

However, it could be a couple of more weeks before Milovanovic actually takes to the pitch for his new employers.

The striker was understandably not in the Pompey squad that suffered a pre-season friendly defeat at the hands of Wycombe at Adams Park on Saturday.

The game came less than 48 hours after his protracted transfer from Spain came to an end.

But with the Serbian having no proper pre-season training under his belt as a deal with Almeria was thrashed out, it could be the Carabao Cup game against West Ham (August 8) or even the Championship opener against QPR (August 15) before he’s utilised properly by the Blues.

John Mousinho on Marko Milovanovic

Revealing his thoughts on Milovanovic’s current availability, Mousinho told The News: ‘It's a big signing for us. The only issue we have with Marko at the moment is that he hasn't really been in training since the back end of last season.

‘He's not been injured but he's just been training on his own. So integrating him back into the first team is going to be a big job for us. ‘

Pompey return to pre-season action on Wednesday, when they travel to non-league Farnborough (7pm).

They then head to Germany to face Darmstadt next Saturday, with their cup trip to West Ham coming the following weekend.

When asked if the centre-forward could feature against Darmstadt, Mousinho added: ‘Maybe. It depends how he gets on with this week.

‘I think we've got an important week of training with him to make sure that he doesn't overdo it.

‘It's been a long, protracted transfer with that one as well. He's got to settle down. We've got to make sure physically we don't miss anything.

‘Maybe (Darmstadt), but probably more likely, he'd be ready to potentially feature for a short amount of time, maybe for West Ham, but if not then for QPR. ‘

Milovanovic’s last match action came for loan side Alverca as a second-half substitute against FC Porto on May 2.

Pompey’s fixture was their fourth pre-season game since the players reported back for duty at the end of June.

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