While Portsmouth have endured a terrible start to the season, fans of the Fratton Park outfit will just be relieved they have a club to support. Then again, Cardiff could view things the same and the Bluebirds have tolerated a whole summer of winding up orders from the High Court. However, it now looks as though those worries are over for the Welsh outfit and they can finally pay full attention to their on the field antics. While it appears as though everything is coming into place for the Bluebirds, the same cannot be said for Portsmouth who are still suffering from dire financial problems and are also struggling on the pitch.
Portsmouth’s financial problems meant the club were on the edge of going bankrupt and because of that, there’s no doubting that footballing matters took a back seat. While the club did take the initiative and appoint Steve Cotterill as manager, financial constraints meant there was little activity in the transfer market and the loan signings of Carl Dickinson and Ibrahima Sonko are the only deals that have materialized. With plenty of players leaving in the summer it means Pompey are down to bare bones and this has shown in their results. So far Cotterill’s men have picked up just the one point after defeats to Coventry and Preston and a 1-1 draw against Reading. This leaves the Fratton Park outfit in the drop zone and while it is early on in the campaign, Cotterill will know the importance of dragging them away from it as quickly as possible.
Cardiff on the other hand are on the up and after a summer of misery, Bluebirds supporters cannot believe their luck at the moment. Since their transfer embargo was lifted a couple of weeks ago, Dave Jones has certainly been busy in the transfer market and the loan signing of Craig Bellamy was the icing on the cake. Bellamy certainly made an impression on his debut as well, providing assists as well as scoring a belter of his own as Cardiff romped to a 4-0 victory. Jones’ men now have seven points to their name and that tally has put them into 2nd position. With the talent at his disposal now, the Bluebirds have got to be classed as one of the favourites for promotion.
As for team news, Portsmouth will hand late fitness tests to David Nugent and John Utaka who are struggling with ankle and hamstring problems respectively. Cardiff’s team news is a little more extensive on the other hand and the Bluebirds have been hit with the news that Michael Chopra could miss the next ten weeks through injury. Other players who are doubtful for this one are Darcy Blake and Kevin McNaughton, although Dave Jones will be hopeful of handing a debut to new loan signing Andy Keogh.
Cardiff are well and truly on the up and we’re going to predict a comfortable victory for Dave Jones’ men in this one. Pompey have serious problems and with Cardiff on such a high, we expect a 2-0 victory for the visitors.
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